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DEVOTED  TO  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  SOUTH 
IN  THE  CIVIL  WAR 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 

00022230131 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


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1H 


THE 


SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON; 


OR, 


ADVENTURES 


OF 

A  FATHER  AND  MOTHER  AND  FOUR  SONS 
IN  A  DESERT  ISLAND: 

THE    GENUINE    PROGRESS    OF    THE    STORY    FORMING    A    CLEAR 

ILLUSTRATION  OF  THE   FIRST  PRINCIPLES  OF  NATURAL 

HISTORY,   AND    MANY    BRANCHES    OF    SCIENCE 

WHICH    MOST    IMMEDIATELY    APPLY    TO 

THE    BUSINESS    OF    LIFE. 

TO   WHICH    ARE   ADDED, 

NOTES  OF   REFERENCE, 

EXPLANATORY     OF     THE     SUBJECTS     TREATED     OF. 

WITH    TEN    CUTS    PROM    NEW    DESIGNS,    AND    A    MAP    OF     THE     ISLAND. 


FROM   SEVENTH    LONDON   EDITION. 


BOSTON: 
PUBLISHED   BY   MUNROE   AND    FRANCIS. 

AND 

CHARLES    S.    FRANCIS,    NEW   YORK. 

1839. 


JM 


Library,  Univ.  of 

North  Carolina 
CONTENTS. 

Chapter  Page 

1 .  A  Shipwreck,  and  Preparations  for  Deliverance  1 1 

2.  A  Landing,  and  consequent  Occupations    ...  23 

3.  Voyage  of  Discovery 40 

4.  Return  from  the  Voyage  of  Discovery; — a  Noc- 
turnal Alarm 61 

5.  Return  to  the  Wreck .  79 

6.  A  Troop  of  Animals  in   Cork  Jackets  ...  91 

7.  Second  Journey  of  Discovery,  performed  by  the 
Mother  of  the  Family 103 

8.  Construction  of  a  Bridge 118 

9.  Change  of  Abode 130 

10.  Construction  of  a  Ladder %.         144 

11.  The  Settling  in  the  Giant  Tree 153 

12.  The  Sabbath  and  the  Parable 158 

13.  Conversation,  a  Walk,  and  important  Discover- 
ies   174 

14.  Continuation  of  the  preceding  Chapter,  and  more 
Discoveries 182 

15.  Hopes  of  a  Sledge; — some  short  Lessons  in  use- 
ful Things 193 

16.  A  Bathing,  a  Fishing,  the  Jumping  Hare,  and  a 

^-  Masquerade 197 

!*    17.     More  Stores  from  the  Wreck 207 

o-  * 

6r 


""5 


X  CONTENTS. 

Chapter  Pag» 

18.  The  Tortoise  harnessed 211 

19.  Another  Trip  to  the  Wreck 219 

20.  The  Cracker,  and  the  Pinnace 228 

21.  Gymnastic    Exercises; — various    Discoveries;  — 

singular  Animals,  &c 242 

22.  Excursion  into  unknown  Tracts    ......  257 

23.  Useful    Occupations  and     Labours; — Embellish- 

/     ments; —  a  painful  but  natural  Sentiment    .     .  270 

24.  A  new   Domain; — the   troop  of  Buffaloes; — the 

Vanquished  Hero 279 

25.  The    Malabar    Eagle; — Sago    Manufactory; — 

Bees 292 

26.  Treatment  of  Bees;  —  Staircase;  -r-  Training  of 

various   Animals; — Manufactures,  &c.  .     .     .  303 

27.  The  Wild  Ass;— Difficulty  in  Breaking  it;— the 

Heath-Fowl's  Nest 315 

28.  Flax,  and  the  Rainy  Season 326 

29.  Spring; — Spinning; — Salt-Mine 336 

30.  House  in  the  Salt-Rock; — Herring  Fishery     .     .349 

31.  New    Fishery; — new   Experiments; — New  Dis- 

coveries, and  House 356 

32.  Completion   of  two  Farm-Houses; — a  Lake; — 

the  Beast  with  a  Bill;— a  Boat 369 

Postscript  by  the  Editor 384 

Notes .389 


PREFACE 


TO    THE 


7TH  EDITION  OF  THE  SWISS  FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

The  Editor  confesses  that  he  expected  the  favour  which 
has  been  shown  by  the  Public  to  the  present  work,  in  the 
sale  of  six  large  editions;  for  the  situations  it  exhibits  of 
the  best  affections  of  our  nature,  are  such  as  to  "come  home 
to  every  bosom,"  to  interest  and  gratify  both  parents  and 
children  of  all  ages  and  descriptions.  I*n  its  pages  the  use- 
ful, the  moral,  and  the  entertaining,  so  naturally  mix  with 
or  succeed  each  other,  that  every  generous  taste  is  suited. 
No  story  can  be  better  calculated  than  this  of  the  Swiss 
Pastor  and  his  Family  to  awaken  and  reward  curiosity,  to 
excite  amiable  sympathies,  to  show  the  young  inquirer  after 
good,  that  the  accidents  of  life  may  be  repaired  by  the 
efforts  of  his  own  thought,  and  the  constancy  of  his  own 
industry;  and  to  rouse  the  most  inert  to  emulation. — What 
youthful  reader  of  lively  dispositions,  who  would  not  try  to 
possess,  or  dream  of  the  possession  of,  a  saw,  a  hammer, 
and  some  nails,  and  hurry  in  fancy  to  the  contrivance  of  a 


Vi  PREFACE. 

Family  Bridge,  a  staircase  to  Falcon's  Nest,  or  a  parlour,  a 
bedroom,  and  a  kitchen,  in  a  Rock  of  Salt?  What  lad  who 
can  see  with  unflushed  cheek,  Ernest,  and  Jack,  and  Fran- 
cis, all  together  on  the  back  of  their  ferocious  but  now  sub- 
dued buffalo,  and  guiding  his  motions  at  their  pleasure;  or 
descry  "Fritz  driving  along  our  avenue  like  lightning,"  on  his 
disciplined  onagra,  without  feeling  his  personal  courage  ex- 
pand as  he  turns  the  page  ?  What  heart  that  will  not  swell 
with  kindness  for  the  exemplary  mother  of  the  family,  who 
tastes  not  of  the  refreshing  draught  obtained  by  her  own 
care  and  labour,  till  all  her  dear  ones  have  drunk  and  are 
refreshed  ? — or  what  eye  repress  a  tear  when  her  little  Fran- 
cis, clinging  to  her  side,  cries,  "  Welcome!"  too,  "though  not 
well  knowing  whether  he  was  to  be  sad  or  merry  V  Who  does 
not  partake  the  affecting  sentiment  of  the  interesting  group, 
who,  "with  their  heads  sinking  on  their  bosoms,  took  the  road 
to  Tent-House,"  when  the  ship  had  disappeared  forever! 
And  can  we  sufficiently  admire  the  fortitude,  the  self-sacri- 
fice, the  industry,  the  fervour,  the  almost  unexampled  skill, 
that  guided  this  affectionate  pair  to  results  so  happy,  in 
circumstances  of  such  dismay  and  danger! 


ADVERTISEMENT  BY  THE  EDITOR. 

A  Pastor  or  Clergyman  of  West  Switzerland,  having 
tost  his  fortune  in  the  Revolution  of  1798,  resolved,  on  re- 
flecting on  the  family  he  had  to  bring  up,  to  become  a 
voluntary  exile,  and  to  seek  in  other  climates  the  means  of 
support.  He  sailed,  accordingly,  with  his  wife  and  child- 
ren, four  sons,  from  twelve  to  five  years  of  age,  for  Eng- 
land, where  he  accepted  an  appointment  of  Missionary  to 
Otaheite;  not  that  he  had  any  desire  to  take  up  his  abode 
in  that  Island,  but  that  he  had  conceived  the  plan  of  passing 
from  thence  to  Port  Jackson,  and  domiciliating  himself 
there  as  a  free  settler.  He  possessed  a  considerable 
knowledge  of  agriculture,  and  by  this  means  hoped,  with 
the  aid  of  his  sons,  to  gain  an  advantageous  establishment, 
which  his  own  country,  convulsed  with  the  horrors  of  war, 
denied  him.  He  turned  the  small  remnant  of  his  fortune 
into  money,  and  bought  with  it  seeds  of  various  sorts,  and 
*  a  few  cattle,  as  a  farming  stock.  The  family  took  their 
passage  accordingly,  satisfied  with  this  consolation — that 
they  should  still  remain  together;  and  they  sailed  with  fa- 
vourable winds  till  in  sight  of  New  Guinea.  Here  they 
were  attacked  by  a  destructive  and  unrelenting  tempest; 
and  it  is  in  this  crisis  of  their  Adventures  that  the  Swiss 
Pastor,  or  Family  Robinson,  begins  the  Journal  which  is 
now  presented  to- the  Public. 


SETTLEMENT    OF    THE    SWISS    PASTOR    AND    HIS 
FAMILY    IN    THE    DESERT    ISLAND. 

[See  Map  on  the  opposite  page.] 


A.  Arcadia. 

B.  Sugar  Canes. 

C.  Cabbage  Palm  Wood. 

D.  Gourd  Wood. 

E.  Bamboos. 

F.  Pass — Drawbridge. 

G.  Acorn  Wood 
H.  Rice  Marsh. 

I.  Monkey  Wood. 

K.  The  Farm 

L.  Lake. 


M.  Cotton  Wood. 

N.  Flamingo  Marsh. 

O.  Cascade. 

P.  Falcon's  Nest. 

Q,.  Palm  Cocoa  Wood. 

R.  Family  Bridge. 

S.  Potato  Plantation. 

T.  Tent  House. 

U.  Grotto. 

V.  Marsh. 

W.  Shark's  Island. 


m 


THE 


SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  Shipwreck,  and  Preparations  for  Deliverance. 

Already  the  tempest  had  continued  six  days;   on 

the  seventh  its  fury  seemed  still  increasing;  and  the  morn- 
ing dawned  upon  us  without  a  prospect  of  hope,  for  we  had 
wandered  so  far  from  the  right  track,  and  were  so  forcibly 
driven  toward  the  southeast,  that  none  onboard  knew  where 
we  were.  The  ship's  company  were  exhausted  by  labour 
and  watching,  and  the  courage  which  had  sustained  them, 
was  now  sinking.  The  shivered  masts  had  been  cast  into 
the  sea;  several  leaks  appeared,  and  the  ship  began  to  fill. 
The  sailors  forbore  from  swearing;  many  were  at  prayer 
on  their  knees,  while  others  offered  miracles  of  future  piety 
and  goodness,  as  the  condition  of  their  release  from  danger. 
"My  beloved  children,"  said  I  to  my  four  boys,  who  clung 
to  me  in  their  fright,  "  God  can  save  us,  for  nothing  is  im- 
possible to  him.  We  must  however  hold  ourselves  resigned, 
and  instead  of  murmuring  at  his  decree,  rely  that  what  he 


12  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

sees  fit  to  do  is  best,  and  that  should  he  call  us  from  this 
earthly  scene,  we  shall  be  near  him  in  heaven,  and  united 
through  eternity.  Daath  may  be  well  supported  when  it 
does  not  separate  those  who  love." 

My  excellent  wife  wiped  the  tears  which  were  falling  on 
her  cheeks,  and  from  this  moment  became  more  tranquil: 
she  encouraged  the  youngest  children,  who  were  leaning  on 
her  knees;  while  I,  who  owed  them  an  example  of  firmness, 
was  scarcely  able  to  resist  my  grief  at  the  thought  of  what 
would  most  likely  be  the  fate  of  beings  so  tenderly  beloved. 
We  all  fell  on  our  knees,  and  supplicated  the  God  of  Mercy 
to  protect  us;  and  the  emotion  and  fervour  of  the  innocent 
creatures,  are  a  convincing  proof  that,  even  in  childhood, 
devotion  may  be  felt  and  understood,  and  that  tranquillity 
and  consolation,  its  natural  effects,  may  at  that  season  be 
no  less  certainly  experienced.  Fritz,  my  eldest  son,  im- 
plored in  a  loud  voice,  that  God  would  deign  to  save  his 
dear  parents  and  his  brothers,  generously  unmindful  of  him- 
self: the  boys  rose  from  their  posture  with  a  state  of  mind 
so  improved,  that  they  seemed  forgetful  of  the  impending 
danger.  I  myself  began  to  feel  my  hopes  increase  as  I 
beheld  the  affecting  group.  Heaven  will  surely  have  pity 
on  them,  thought  I,  and  will  saye  their  parents  to  guard 
their  tender  years! 

At  this  moment  a  cry  of  "  Land,  Land!"  was  heard 
through  the  roaring  of  the  waves,  and  instantly  the  vessel 
struck  against  a  rock  with  so  violent  a  motion  as  to  drive 
every  one  from  his  place ;  a  tremendous  cracking  succeeded, 
as  if  the  ship  was  going  to  pieces;  the  sea  rushed  in,  in  all 
directions;  we  perceived  that  the  vessel  had  grounded,  and 
could  not  long  hold  together.  The  captain  called^out  that 
all  was  lost,  and  bade  the  men  lose  not  a  moment  in  putting 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON,  13 

out  the  boats.  The  sounds  fell  on  my  heart  like  a  thrust 
from  a  dagger:  "We  are  lost!"  I  exclaimed;  and  the 
children  broke  out  into  piercing  cries.  I  then  recollected 
myself,  and  addressing  them  again,  exhorted  them  to  cour- 
age, by  observing  that  the  water  had  not  yet  reached  us, 
that  the  ship  was  near  land,  and  that  Providence  would  as- 
sist the  brave.  "  Keep  where  you  are,"  added  I,  "while 
I  go  and  examine  what  is  best  to  be  done. 

I  now  went  on  the  deck.  A  wave  instantly  threw  me 
down,  and  wetted  me  to  the  skin;  another  followed,  and 
then  another.  I  sustained  myself  as  steadily  as  I  could; 
and  looking  around,  a  scene  of  terrific  and  complete  disaster 
met  my  eyes:  the  ship  was  shattered  in  all  directions,  and 
on  one  side  there  was  a  complete  breach.  The  ship's  com- 
pany crowded  into  the  boats  till  they  could  contain  not  one 
man  more,  and  the  last  who  entered,  were  now  cutting  the 
ropes  to  move  off.  I  called  to  them  with  almost  frantic  en- 
treaties to  stop  and  receive  us  also,  but  in  vain;  for  the 
roaring  of  the  sea  prevented  my  being  heard,  and  the  waves, 
which  rose  to  the  height  of  mountains,  would  have  made  it 
impossible  to  return.  All  hope  from  this  source  was  over, 
for  while  I  spoke,  the  boats,  and  all  they  contained,  were 
driving  out  of  sight.  My  best  consolation  now  was  to  ob- 
serve, that  the  slanting  position  the  ship  had  taken,  would 
afford  us  present  protection  from  the  water;  and  that  the 
stern,  under  which  was  the  cabin  that  inclosed  all  that  was 
dear  to  me  on  earth,  had  been  driven  upwards  between  two 
rocks,  and  seemed  immovably  fixed.  At  the  same  time, 
in  the  distance  southward,  I  descried  through  clouds  and 
rain  several  nooks  of  land,  which,  though  rude  and  savage 
in  appearance,  were  the  objects  of  every  hope  I  could  form 
in  this  distressing  moment.  , 


14  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

Sunk  and  desolate  from  the  loss  of  all  chance  of  human 
aid,  it  was  yet  my  duty  to  appear  serene  before  my  family: 
"Courage,  dear  ones,"  cried  I,  on  entering  their  cabin, 
"let  us  not  desert  ourselves:  I  will  not  conceal  from  you 
that  the  ship  is  aground;  but  we  are  at  least  in  greater  safety 
than  if  she  were  beating  upon  the  rocks:  our  cabin  is  above 
water;  and  should  the  sea  be  more  calm  to-morrow,  we  may 
yet  find  means  to  reach  the  land  in  safety." 

What  I  had  just  said,  appeased  their  fears;  for  my  family 
had  the  habit  of  confiding  in  my  assurances.  They  now  be- 
gan to  feel  the  advantage  of  the  ship's  remaining  still;  for 
its  motion  had  been  most  distressing,  by  jostling  them  one 
against  another,  or  whatever  happened  to  be  nearest. 
My  wife,  however,  more  accustomed  than  the  children  to 
read  my  inmost  thoughts,  perceived  the  anxiety  which  de- 
voured me.  I  made  her  a  sign  which  conveyed  an  idea  of 
the  hopelessness  of  our  situation,  and  I  had  the  consolation 
to  see  that  she  was  resolved  to  support  the  trial  with  resig- 
nation: "  Let  us  take  some  nourishment,"  said  she,  "  our 
courage  will  strengthen  with  our  bodies;  we  shall  perhaps 
need  this  comfort  to  support  a  long  and  melancholy  night." 

Soon  after,  night  set  in:  the  fury  of  the  tempest  had  not 
abated;  the  planks  and  beams  of  the  vessel  separated  in 
many  parts  with  a  horrible  crash.  We  thought  of  the  boats, 
and  feared  that  all  they  contained  must  have  sunk  under  the 
foaming  surge. 

My  wife  had  prepared  a  slender  meal,  and  the  four  boys 
partook  of  it  with  an  appetite  to  which  their  parents  were 
strangers.  They  went  to  bed,  and  exhausted  by  fatigue, 
soon  were  snoring  soundly.  Fritz,  the  eldest,  sat  up  with 
us:  "I  have  been  thinking,"  said  he  after  a  long  silence, 
"  how  it  may  be  possible  to  save  ourselves.     If  we  had  some 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  15 

bladders  or  cork-jackets  for  my  mother  and  my  brothers, 
you  and  I,  father,  would  soon  contrive  to  swim  to  land." 

"That  is  a  good  thought,"  said  I:  "we  will  see  what 
can  be  done." 

Fritz  and  I  looked  about  for  some  small  empty  firkins: 
these  we  tied  two  and  two  together  with  handkerchiefs  or 
towels,  leaving  about  a  foot  distance  between  them,  and 
fastened  them  as  swimming-jackets  under  the  arms  of  each 
child,  my  wife  at  the  same  time  preparing  one  for  herself. 
We  provided  ourselves  with  knives,  some  string,  some  turfs, 
and  other  necessaries  which  could  be  put  into  the  pocket, 
proceeding  upon  the  hope,  that  if  the  ship  went  to  pieces  in 
the  night,  we  should  either  be  able  to  swim  to  land,  or  be 
driven  thither  by  the  waves. 

Fritz,  who  had  been  up  all  night,  and  was  fatigued  with 
his  laborious  occupations,  now  lay  down  near  his  brothers, 
a#d  was,  soon  asleep;  but  their  mother  and  I,  too  anxious  to 
close  our  eyes,  kept  watch,  listening  to  every  sound  that 
seemed  to  threaten  a  further  change  in  our  situation.  We 
passed  this  awful  night  in  prayer,  in  agonizing  apprehensions, 
and  in  forming  various  resolutions  as  to  what  we  should 
next  attempt.  We  hailed  with  joy  the  first  gleam  of  light 
which  shot  through  a  small  opening  of  the  window.  The 
raging  of  the  winds  had  begun  to  abate,  the  sky  was  become 
serene,  and  hope  throbbed  in  my  bosom,  as  I  beheld  the 
sun  already  tinging  the  horizon.  Thus  revived,  I  summon- 
ed my  wife  and  the  boys  to  the  deck,  to  partake  of  the  scene. 
The  youngest  children,  half  forgetful  of  the  past,  asked  with 
surprise  why  we  were  there  alone,  and  what  had  become  of 
the  ship's  company?  I  led  them  to  the  recollection  of  our 
misfortune,  and  then  added:  "Dearest  children,  a  Being 
more  powerful  than  man  has  helped  us,  and  will,  no  doubt, 


16  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

continue  to  help  us,  if  we  do  not  abandon  ourselves  to  a 
fruitless  despair.  Observe,  our  companions,  in  whom  we 
had  so  much  confidence,  have  deserted  us,  and  that  Divine 
Providence,  in  its  goodness,  has  given  us  protection!  But, 
my  dear  ones,  let  us  show  ourselves  willing  in  our  exertions, 
and  thus  deserve  support  from  Heaven.  Let  us  not  forget  this 
useful  maxim,  and  let  each  labour  according  to  his  strength." 

Fritz  advised  that  we  should  all  throw  ourselves  into  the 
sea,  while  it  was  calm,  and  swim  to  land. — "  Ah!  that  may 
be  well  enough  for  you,"  said  Ernest,  "  for  you  can  swim; 
but  we  others  should  soon  be  drowned.  Would  it  not  be 
better  to  make  a  float  of  rafts,  and  get  to  land  altogether 
upon.it?  " 

"  Vastly  well,"  answered  I,  "if  we  had  the  means  for 
contriving  such  a  float,  and  if,  after  all,  it  were  not  a  dan- 
gerous sort  of  conveyance.  But  come,  my  boys,  look  each 
of  you  about  the  ship,  and  see  what  can  be  done  to  enable 
us  to  reach  the  land." 

They  now  all  sprang  from  me  with  eager  looks,  to  do  as 
I  desired.  I,  on  my  part,  lost  no  time  in  examining  what 
we  had  to  depend  upon  as  to  provisions  and  fresh  water. 
My  wife  and  the  youngest  boy  visited  the  animals,  whom 
they  found  in  a  pitiable  condition,  nearly  perishing  with 
hunger  and  thirst.  Fritz  repaired  to  the  ammunition  room; 
Ernest  to  the  carpenter's  cabin,  and  Jack  to  the  apartment 
of  the  captain;  but  scarcely  had  he  opened  the  door,  when 
two  large  dogs  sprang  upon  him,  and  saluted  him  with  such 
rude  affection,  that  he  roared  for  assistance,  as  if  they  had 
been  killing  him.  Hunger,  however,  had  rendered  the 
poor  creatures  so  gentle,  that  they  licked  his  hands  and  face, 
uttering  all  the  time  alow  sort  of  moan,  and  continuing  their 
caresses  till  he  was  almost  suffocated.     Poor  Jack  exerted 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  17 

all  his  strength  in  blows  to  drive  them  away:  at  last  he  be- 
gan to  understand,  and  to  sympathise  in  their  joyful  move- 
ments, and  put  himself  upon  another  footing:  he  got  upon 
his  legs;  and  gently  taking  the  largest  dog  by  the  ears, 
sprang  upon  his  back,  and  with  great  gravity  presented 
himself  thus  mounted  before  me,  as  I  came  out  of  the  ship's 
hold.  I  could  not  refrain  from  laughing,  and  I  praised  his 
courage:  but  I  added  a  little  exhortation  to  be  cautious, 
and  not  go  too  far  with  animals  of  this  species,  who,  in  a 
state  of  hunger,  might  be  dangerous. 

By  and  by  my  little  company  were  again  assembled  round 
me,  and  each  boasted  of  what  he  had  to  contribute.  Fritz 
had  two  fowling-pieces,  some  powder,  and  small  shot,  con- 
tained in  horn  flasks,  and  some  bullets  in  bags.  ~ 

Ernest  produced  his  hat  filled  with  nails,  and  held  in  his 
hands  a  hatchet  and  a  hammer;  in  addition,  a  pair  of  pin- 
cers, a  pair  of  large  scissors,  and  an  auger,  peeped  out  at 
his  pocket-hole. 

Even  the  little  Francis  carried  under  his  arm  a  box  of  no 
very  small  size,  from  which  he  eagerly  produced  what  he 
called  some  little  sharp-pointed  hooks.  His  brothers  smiled 
scornfully.  "Vastly  well,  gentlemen,"  said  I;  "but  let 
me  tell  you  that  the  youngest  has  brought  the  most  valuable 
prize:  and  this  is  often  the  case  in  the  world;  the  person 
who  least  courts  the  smiles  of  Fortune,  and  in  the  calm  of 
his  heart  is  scarcely  conscious  of  her  existence,  is  often  he 
to  whom  she  most  readily  presents  herself.  These  little 
sharp-pointed  hooks,  as  Francis  calls  them,  are  fishing- 
hooks,  and  will  probably  be  of  more  use  in  preserving  our 
lives,  than  all  we  may  find  besides  in  the  ship.  In  justice, 
however,  I  must  confess,  that  what  Fritz  and  Ernest  have 
contributed,  will  also  afford  essential  service." 

B 


18  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"  I,  for  my  part,"  said  my  wife,  "  have  brought  nothing; 
but  I  have  some  tidings  to  communicate  which  I  hope  will 
secure  my  welcome :  I  have  found  on  board,  a  cow  and  an 
ass,  two  goats,  six  sheep,  and  a  sow  big  with  young:  I  have 
just  supplied  them  with  food  and  water,  and  I  reckon  on 
being  able  to  preserve  their  lives." 

"All  this  is  admirable,"  said  I  to  my  young  labourers; 
"  and  there  is  only  master  Jack,  who,  instead  of  thinking 
of  something  useful,  has  done  us  the  favour  to  present  us  two 
personages,  who,  no  doubt,  will  be  principally  distinguished  by 
being  willing  to  eat  more  than  we  shall  have  to  give  them." 

"  Ah!  "  replied  Jack,  "  but  if  we  can  once  get  to  land, 
you  will  see  that  they  will  assist  us  in  hunting  and  shooting." 

"  True  enough,"  said  I,  "but  be  so  good  as  to  tell  us 
how  we  are  to  get  to  land,  and  whether  you  have  contrived 
the  means?  " 

"  I  am  sure  it  cannot  be  very  difficult,"  said  Jack,  with 
an  arch  motion  of  his  head.  "Look  here  at  these  large 
tubs.  Why  cannot  each  of  us  get  into  one  of  them,  and 
float  to  the  land?  I  remember  I  succeeded  very  well  in  this 
manner  on  the  water,  when  I  was  visiting  my  godfather  at 

"  Every  one's  thought  is  good  for  something,"  cried  I, 
"and  I  begin  to  believe  that  what  Jack  has  suggested  is 
worth  a  trial:  quick!  then,  boy,  give  me  the  saw,  the  au- 
ger, and  some  nails;  we  will  see  what  is  to  be  done."  I 
recollected  having  seen  some  empty  casks  in  the  ship's  hold: 
we  went  down,  and  found  them  floating  in  the  water  which 
had  got  into  the  vessel;  it  cost  us  but  little  trouble  to  hoist 
them  up,  and  place  them  on  the  lower  deck,  which  was  at 
this  time  scarcely  above  water.  We  saw  with  joy,  that  they 
were  all  sound,  well  guarded  by  iron  hoops,  and  in  every 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  19 

respect  in  good  condition;  they  were  exactly  suited  for  the 
object;  and,  with  the  assistance  of  my  sons,  I  instantly  be- 
gan to  saw  them  in  two.  In  a  short  time  I  had  produced 
eight  tubs,  of  equal  size,  and  of  the  proper  height.  We 
now  allowed  ourselves  some  refreshment  of  wine  and  bis- 
cuit. I  viewed  with  delight  my  eight  little  tubs,  ranged  in 
a  line.  I  was  surprised  to  see  that  my  wife  did  not  partake 
our  eagerness;  she  sighed  deeply  as  she  looked  at  them: 
"  Never,  never,"  cried  she,  "  can  I  venture  to  get  into  one 
ofthese." 

*"  Do  not  decide  so  hastily,  my  dear,"  said  I:  "  my  plan 
is  not  yet  complete;  and  you  will  see  presently,  that  it  is 
more  worthy  of  our  confidence  than  this  shattered  vessel, 
which  cannot  move  from  its  place." 

I  then  sought  for  a  long  pliant  plank,  and  placed  my  eight 
tubs  upon  it,  leaving  a  piece  at  each  end,  reaching  beyond 
the  tubs;  which,  bent  upward,  would  present  an  outline  like 
the  keel  of  a  vessel:  we  next  nailed  all  the  tubs  to  the  plank, 
and  then  the  tubs  to  each  other  as  they  stood,  side  by  side, 
to  make  them  the  firmer,  and  afterwards  two  other  planks, 
of  the  same  length  as  the  first,  on  each  side  of  the  tubs. 
When  all  this  was  finished,  we  found  we  had  produced  a 
kind  of  narrow  boat,  divided  into  eight  compartments,  which 
I  had  no  doubt  would  be  able  to  perform  a  short  course,  in 
calm  water. 

But  now  we  discovered  that  the  machine  we  had  contrived 
was  so  heavy,  that  with  the  strength  of  all  united,  we  were 
not  able  to  move  it  an  inch  from  its  place.  I  bade  Fritz 
fetch  me  a  crow,  who  soon  returned  with  it:  in  the  mean- 
while, I  sawed  a  thick  round  pole  into  several  pieces,  to 
make  some  rollers.  I  then,  with  the  crow,  easily  raised  the 
foremost  part  of  my  machine,  while  Fritz  placed  one  of  the 
rollers  under  it. 


20  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"How  astonishing,"  cried  Ernest,  "that  this  engine, 
which  is  smaller  than  any  of  us,  can  do  more  than  our  unit- 
ed strength  was  able  to  effect!  I  wish  I  could  know  how  it 
is  constructed.'* 

I  explained  to  him  as  well  as  I  could,  the  power  of  Ar- 
chimedes's  lever,  with  which  he  said  he  could  move  the 
world,  if  you  would  give  him  a  point  from  which  his  mechan- 
ism might  act,  and  promised  to  explain  the  nature  of  the 
operation  of  the  crow  when  we  should  be  safe  on  land. 

One  of  the  points  of  my  system  of  education  for  my  sons 
was,  to  awaken  their  curiosity  by  interesting  observations, 
to  leave  time  for  the  activity  of  the  imagination,  and  then  to 
correct  any  error  they  might  fall  into.  I  contented  myself 
now,  however,  with  this  general  remark,  that  God  suffi- 
ciently compensated  the  natural  weakness  of  man  by  the 
gifts  of  reason,  of  invention,  and  the  adroitness  of  the  hands; 
and  that  human  meditation  and  skill  had  produced  a  science, 
called  mechanics,  the  object  of  which  was,  to  teach  us  how 
to  make  our  own  natural  strength  act  to  an  incredible  dis- 
tance, and  with  extraordinary  force,  by  the  intervention  of 
instruments. 

Jack  here  remarked,  that  the  action  of  the  crow  was  very 
slow. 

"Better  slow  than  never,  Jack,"  replied  I.  "Experi- 
ence has  ever  taught,  and  mechanical  observations  have  es- 
tablished as  a  principle,  that  what  is  gained  in  speed,  is  lost 
in  strength  i  the  purpose  of  the  crow  is  not  to  enable  us  to  raise 
any  thing  rapidly,  but  to  raise  what  is  exceedingly  heavy; 
and  the  heavier  the  thing  we  would  move,  the  slower  is  the 
mechanical  operation.  But  are  you  aware  what  we  have  at 
our  command,  to  compensate  this  slowness?  " 

"  Yes,  it  is  turning  the  handle  quicker." 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON.  21 

"  Your  guess  is  wrong;  that  would  be  no  compensation: 
the  true  remedy,  my  boy,  is  to  call  in  the  assistance  of  pa- 
tience and  reason:  with  the  aid  of  these  two  fairy  powers, 
I  am  in  hopes  to  set  my  machine  afloat."  As  I  said  this,  I 
tied  a  long  cord  to  its  stern,  and  the  other  end  of  it  to  one 
of  the  timbers  of  the  ship,  which  appeared  to  be  still  firm, 
so  that  the  cord  being  left  loose,  would  serve  to  guide  and 
restrain  it  when  launched.  We  now  put  a  second  and  a 
third  roller  under,  and  applying  the  crow,  to  our  great  joy 
our  machine  descended  into  the  water  with  such  a  velocity, 
that  if  the  rope  had  not  been  well  fastened,  it  would  have 
gone  far  out  to  sea.  But  now  a  new  difficulty  presented  it- 
self: the  boat  leaned  so  much  on  one  side,  that  the  boys  all 
exclaimed  they  could  not  venture  to  get  into  it.  I  was  for 
some  moments  in  the  most  painful  perplexity;  but  it  sudden- 
ly occurred  to  me,  that  ballast  only  was  wanting  to  set  it 
straight.  I  drew  it  near,  and  threw  all  the  useless  things  I 
could  find  into  the  tubs,  so  as  to  make  weight  on  the  light 
side:  by  degrees  the  machine  became  quite  straight  and 
firm  in  the  water,  seeming  to  invite  us  to  take  refuge  in  its 
protection.  All  now  would  get  into  the  tubs,  and  the  boys 
began  to  dispute  which  should  be  first.  I  drew  them  back, 
and  seeking  a  remedy  for  this  kind  of  obstacle,  I  recollected 
that  savage  nations  make  use  of  a  paddle  for  preventing 
their  canoes  from  upsetting.  I  once  more  set  to  work,  to 
make  one  of  these. 

I  took  two  poles  of  equal  length,  upon  which  the  sails  of  the 
vessel  had  been  stretched,  and  having  descended  into  the  ma- 
chine, fixed  one  of  them  at  the  head,  and  the  other  at  the  stern, 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  enable  us  to  turn  them  at  pleasure  to 
right  or  left,  as  should  best  answer  the  purpose  of  guiding 
and  putting  it  out  to  sea.     I  stuck  the  end  of  each  pole,  or 


22  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

paddle,  into  the  bung-hole  of  an  empty  brandy-keg,  which 
served  to  keep  the  paddles  steady,  and  to  prevent  any  in- 
terruption in  the  management  of  our  future  enterprise. 

There  remained  nothing  more  to  do,  but  to  find  in  what 
way  I  could  clear  out  from  the  incumbrance  of  the  wreck. 
I  got  into  the  first  tub,  and  steered  the  head  of  the  machine, 
so  as  to  make  it  enter  the  cleft  in  the  ship's  side,  where  it 
could  remain  quiet.  I  then  remounted  the  vessel,  and  some- 
times with  the  saw,  and  sometimes  with  the  hatchet,  I  clear- 
ed away  to  right  and  left,  every  thing  that  could  obstruct 
our  passage;  and  that  being  effected,  we  next  secured  some 
oars  for  the  voyage  we  resolved  on  attempting. 

We  had  spent  the  day  in  laborious  exertions;  it  was  al- 
ready late;  and  as  it  would  not  have  been  possible  to  reach 
the  land  that  evening,  we  were  obliged  to  pass  a  second 
night  in  the  wrecked  vessel,  which  at  every  instant  threat- 
ened to  fall  to  pieces.  We  next  refreshed  ourselves  by  a 
regular  meal;  for,  during  the  day's  work,  we  had  scarcely 
allowed  ourselves  to  take  a  bit  of  bread,  or  a  glass  of  wine. 
Being  now  in  a  more  tranquil  and  unapprehensive  state  of 
mind  than  the  day  before,  we  all  abandoned  ourselves  to 
sleep;  not,  however,  till  I  had  used  the  precaution  of  tying 
the  swimming  apparatus  round  my  three  youngest  boys  and 
my  wife,  in  case  the  storm  should  again  come  on.  I  also 
advised  my  wife  to  dress  herself  in  the  clothes  of  one  of  the 
sailors,  which  were  so  much  mOre  convenient  for  swimming, 
or  any  other  exertions  she  might  be  compelled  to  engage  in. 
She  consented,  but  not  without  reluctance,  and  left  us  to 
look  for  some  that  might  best  suit  her  size.  In  a  quarter  of 
an  hour  she  returned,  dressed  in  the  clothes  of  a  young  man 
who  had  served  as  volunteer  on  board  the  ship.  She  could 
not  conceal  the  timid  awkwardness  so  natural  to  her  sex  in 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  23 

such  a  situation:  but  I  soon  found  means  to  reconcile  her  to 
the  change,  by  representing  the  many  advantages  it  gave 
her,  till  at  length  she  joined  in  the  merriment  her  dress 
occasioned,  and  one  and  all  crept  into  our  separate  ham- 
mocks, where  a  delicious  repose  prepared  us  for  the  renewal 
of  our  labours. 


CHAPTER  II. 


A  Landing,  and  consequent  Occupations. 

By  break  of  day  we  were  all  awake  and  alert,  for  hope 
as  well  as  grief  is  unfriendly  to  lengthened  slumbers.  When 
we  had  finished  our  morning  prayer,  I  said,  "We  now,  my 
best  beloved,  with  the  assistance  of  Heaven,  must  enter 
upon  the  work  of  our  deliverance.  The  first  thing  to  be 
done,  is  to  give  to  each  poor  animal  on  board  a  hearty  meal; 
we  will  then  put  food  enough  before  them  for  several  days; 
we  cannot  take  them  with  us;  but  we  will  hope  it  may  be 
possible,  if  our  voyage  succeeds,  to  return  and  fetch  them. 
Are  you  now  all  ready  ?  Bring  together  whatever  is  absolute- 
ly necessary  for  our  wants.  It  is  my  wish  that  our  first  cargo 
should  consist  of  a  barrel  of  gunpowder,  three  fowling  pieces, 
and  three  carbines,  with  as  much  small  shot  and  lead, 
and  as  many  bullets  as  our  boat  will  carry;  two  pair  of 
pocket-pistols,  and  one  of  large  ones,  not  forgetting  a  mould 
to  cast  balls  in;  each  of  the  boys,  and  their  mother  also, 


24  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

should  have  a  bag  to  carry  game  in;  you  will  find  plenty  of 
these  in  the  cabins  of  the  officers." — We  added  a  chest 
containing  cakes  of  portable  soup,  another  full  of  hard  bis- 
cuits, an  iron  pot,  a  fishing-rod,  a  chest  of  nails,  and  anoth- 
er of  different  utensils,  such  as  hammers,  saws,  pincers, 
hatchets,,  augers,  &c.,  and  lastly,  some  sail-cloth  to  make  a 
tent.  Indeed,  the  boys  brought  so  many  things,  that  we 
were  obliged  to  reject  some  of  them,  though  I  had  already 
exchanged  the  worthless  ballast  for  articles  of  use  in  the 
question  of  our  subsistence. 

When  all  was  ready,  we  stepped  bravely  each  into  a  tub. 
At  the  moment  of  our  departure  the  cocks  and  hens  began 
to  cluck,  as  if  conscious  that  we  had  deserted  them,  yet 
were  willing  to  bid  us  a  sorrowful  adieu.  This  suggested 
to  me  the  idea  of  taking  the  geese,  ducks,  fowls,  and  pig- 
eons with  us;  observing  to  my  wife,  that  if  we  could  not  find 
means  to  feed  them,  at  least  they  would  feed  us. 

We  accordingly  executed  this  plan.  We  put  ten  hens 
and  an  old  and  a  young  cock  into  one  of  the  tubs,  and  cov- 
ered it  with  planks;  we  set  the  rest  of  the  poultry  at  liberty, 
in  the  hope  that  instinct  would  direct  them  towards  the  land, 
the  geese  and  the  ducks  by  water,  and  the  pigeons  by  the 
air. 

We  were  waiting  for  my  wife,  who  had  the  care  of  this 
last  part  of  our  embarkation,  when  she  joined  us  loaded  with  a 
large  bag,  which  she  threw  into  the  tub  that  already  contain- 
ed her  youngest  son.  I  imagined  that  she  intended  it  for 
him  to  sit  upon,  or  perhaps  to  confine  him  so  as  to  prevent 
his  being  tossed  from  side  to  side.  I  therefore  asked  no 
questions  concerning  it.  The  order  of  our  departure  was 
as  follows: 

In  the  first  tub,  at  the  boat's  head,  my  wife,  the  most  ten- 
der and  exemplary  of  her  sex,  placed  herself. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  25 

In  the  second,  our  little  Francis,  a  lovely  boy  six  years 
old,  remarkable  for  the  sweetest  and  happiest  temper,  and 
for  his  affection  to  his  parents. 

In  the  third,  Fritz,  our  eldest  boy,  between  fourteen  and 
fifteen  years  of  age,  a  handsome  curl-pated  youth,  full  of 
intelligence  and  vivacity. 

In  the  fourth  was  the  barrel  of  gunpowder,  with  the  cocks 
and  hens  and  the  sail-cloth. 

In  the  fifth,  the  provisions  of  every  kind. 

In  the  sixth,  our  third  son  Jack,  a  light-hearted,  enter- 
prising, audacious,  generous  lad,  about  ten  years  old. 

In  the  seventh,  our  second  son  Ernest,  a  boy  of  twelve 
years  old,  of  a  rational,  reflecting  temper,  well-informed  for 
his  age,  but  somewhat  disposed  to  indolence  and  the  plea- 
sures of  the  senses. 

In  the  eighth,  a  father,  to  whose  paternal  care  the  task 
of  guiding  the  machine  for  the  safety  of  his  beloved  family 
was  entrusted.  Each  of  us  had  useful  implements  within 
reach;  the  hand  of  each  held  an  oar,  and  near  each  was  a 
swimming  apparatus  in  readiness  for  what  might  happen. 
The  tide  was  already  at  half  its  height  when  we  left  the  ship, 
and  I  had  counted  on  this  circumstance  as  favourable  to  our 
want  of  strength.  We  held  the  two  paddles  longways,  and 
thus  we  passed  without  accident  through  the  cleft  of  the 
vessel  into  the  sea.  The  boys  devoured  with  their  eyes  the 
blue  land  they  saw  at  a  distance.  We  rowed  with  all  our 
strength,  but  long  in  vain,  to  reach  it:  the  boat  only  turned 
round  and  round:  at  length  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  steer 
in  such  a  way  that  it.  proceeded  in  a  straight  line.  The  two 
dogs  perceiving  we  had  abandoned  them,  plunged  into  the  sea 
and  swam  to  the  boat;  they  were  too  large  for  us  to  think 
of  giving  them  admittance,   and  I  dreaded  lest  they  should 


26  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

jump  in  and  upset  us.  Turk  was  an  English  dog,  and  Flora 
a  bitch  of  the  Danish  breed.  I  was  in  great  uneasiness  on 
their  account,  for  I  feared  it  would  not  be  possible  for  them 
to  swim  so  far.  The  dogs,  however,  managed  the  affair 
with  perfect  intelligence.  When  fatigued,  they  rested  their 
fore-paws  on  one  of  the  paddles,  and  thus  with  little  effort 
proceeded. 

Jack  was  disposed  to  refuse  them  this  accommodation, 
but  he  soon  yielded  to  my  argument,  that  it  was  cruel  and 
unwise  to  neglect  creatures  thrown  on  our  protection,  and 
who  indeed  might  hereafter  protect  us  in  their  turn,  by 
guarding  us  from  harm,  and  assisting  in  our  pursuit  of  ani- 
mals for  food.  "Besides,"  added  I,  "God  has  given  the 
dog  to  man  to  be  his  faithful  companion  and  friend." 

Our  voyage  proceeded  securely,  though  slowly;  but  the 
nearer  we  approached  the  land,  the  more  gloomy  and  un- 
promising its  aspect  appeared.  The  coast  was  clothed  with 
'  barren  rocks,  which  seemed  to  offer  nothing  but  hunger  and 
distress.  The  ,sea  was  calm;  the  waves,  gently  agitated, 
washed  the  shore,  and  the  sky  was  serene;  in  every  direc- 
tion we  perceived  casks,  bales,  chests,  and  other  vestiges 
of  shipwrecks,  floating  round  us.  In  the  hope  of  obtaining 
some  good  provisions,  I  determined  on  endeavouring  to  se- 
cure some  of  the  casks.  I  bad^  Fritz  have  a  rope,  a  ham- 
mer, and  some  nails  ready,  and  to  try  to  seize  them  as  we 
passed.  He  suceeded  in  laying  hold  of  two,  and  in  such  a 
way  that  we  could  draw  them  after  us  to  the  shore.  Now 
that  we  were  close  on  land,  its  rude  outline  was  much  soft- 
ened; the  rocks  no  longer  appeared  one  undivided  chain; 
Fritz  with  his  hawk's  eye  already  descried  some  trees,  and 
exclaimed  that  they  were  palm  trees.  Ernest  expressed  his 
joy  that  he  should  now  get  much  larger  and  better  cocoa 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  27 

nuts  than  those  of  Europe.  I  for  my  part  was  venting  au- 
dibly my  regret,  that  I  had  not  thought  of  bringing  a  tele- 
scope that  I  knew  was  in  the  captain's  cabin,  when  Jack 
drew  a  small  one  from  his  pocket,  and  with  a  look  o'f  tri- 
umph presented  it  to  me. 

The  acquisition  of  the  telescope  was  of  great  importance ; 
for  with  its  aid  I  was  able  to  make  the  necessary  observa- 
tions, and  was  more  sure  of  the  rout  I  ought  to  take.  On 
applying  it  to  my  eye,  I  remarked  that  the  shore  before  us 
had  a  desert  and  savage  aspect,  but  that  towards  the  left, 
the  scene  was  more  agreeable:  but  when  I  attempted  to 
steer  in  that  direction,  a  current  carried  me  irresistibly  to- 
wards the  coast  that  was  rocky  and  barren.  By  and  by  we 
perceived  a  little  opening  between  the  rocks,  near  the  mouth 
of  a  creek,  towards  which  all  our  geese  and  ducks  betook 
themselves;  and  I,  relying  on  their  sagacity,  followed  in  the 
same  course.  This  opening  formed  a  little  bay;  the  water 
was  tranquil,  and  neither  too  deep  nor  too  shallow  to  receive 
our  boat.  I  entered  it,  and  cautiously  put  on  shore  on  a 
spot  where  the  coast  was  about  the  same  height  above  the 
water  as  our  tubs,  and  where,  at  the  same  time,  there  was 
a  quantity  sufficient  to  keep  us  afloat.  The  shore  extended 
inland  in  something  of  the  form  of  an  isosceles  triangle,  the 
upper  angle  of  which  terminated  among  the  rocks,  while  the 
margin  of  the  sea  formed  the  basis. 

All  that  had  life  in  the  boat  jumped  eagerly  on  land. 
Even  little  Francis,  who  had  been  wedged  in  his  tub  like  a 
potted  herring,  now  got  up  and  sprang  forward;  but,  with 
all  his  efforts,  he  could  not  succeed  without  his  mother's 
help.  The  dogs,  who  had  swam  on  shore,  received  us  as 
if  appointed  to  do  the  honours  of  the  place,  jumping  round 
us  with  every  demonstration  of  joy :  the  geese  kept  up  a 


23  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON 

loud  cackling,  to  which  the  ducks,  from  their  broad  yellow 
beaks,  contributed  a  perpetual  thorough-bass:  the  cocks 
and  hens,  which  we  had  already  set  at  liberty,  clucked:  the 
boys  chattering  all  at  once,  produced  altogether  an  over- 
powering confusion  of  sounds:  to  this  was  added  the  disa- 
greeable scream  of  some  penguins  and  flamingos,  which  we 
now  perceived,  some  flying  over  our  heads,  others  sitting  on 
the  points  of  the  rocks  at  the  entrance  of  the  bay.  By  and 
by  the  notes  of  the  latter  had  the  ascendant,  from  their  num- 
bers; and  our  annoyance  was  increased  by  a  comparison 
we  could  not  avoid  making,  between  the  sounds  they  ut- 
tered, and  the  harmony  of  the  feathered  musicians  of  our 
own  country.  I  had  however  one  advantage  in  perspective; 
— it  was  that,"  should  we  hereafter  be  short  of  food,  these 
very  birds  might  serve  for  our  subsistence. 

The  first  thing  we  did  on  finding  ourselves  safe  on  ierra 
Jirma,  was  to  fall  on  our  knees,  and  return  thanks  to  the 
Supreme  Being  who  had  preserved  our  lives,  and  to  recom- 
mend ourselves  with  entire  resignation  to  the  care  of  his 
paternal  kindness. 

We  next  -employed  our  whole,,  attention  in  unloading  the 
boat.  Oh !  how  rich  we  thought  ourselves  in  the  little  we  had 
been  able  to  rescue  from  the  merciless  abyss  of  waters!  We 
looked  about  for  a  convenient  place  to  set  up  a  tent  under 
the  shade  of  the  rocks;  and  having  all  consulted  and  agreed 
upon  a  place,  we  set  to  work.  We  drove  one  of  our  poles 
firmly  into  a  fissure  of  the  rock;  this  rested  upon  another 
pole,  which  was  driven  perpendicularly  into  the  ground,  and 
formed  the  ridge  of  our  tent.  A  frame  for  a  dwelling  was 
thus  made  secure.  We  next  threw  some  sail-cloth  over  the 
ridge,  and  stretching  it  to  a  convenient  distance  on  each 
side,    fastened   its   extremities  to    the  ground  with  stakes. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  29 

Lastly,  I  fixed  some  tenter-hooks  along  the  edge  of  one  side 
of  the  sail-cloth  in  front,  that  we  might  be  able  to  enclose 
the  entrance  during  night,  by  hooking  in  the  opposite  edge. 
The  chest  of  provisions  and  other  heavy  matters  we  had  left 
on  the  shore.  The  next  thing  was  to  desire  my  sons  to  look 
about  for  grass  and  moss,  to  be  spread  and  dried  in  the  sun, 
to  serve  us  for  beds.  During  this  occupation,  in  which  even 
the  little  Francis  could  take  a  share,  I  erected  near  the  tent 
a  kind  of  little  kitchen.  A  few  fiat  stones,  I  found  in  the  bed 
of  a  fresh-water  river,  served  for  a  hearth.  I  got  a  quanti- 
ty of  dry  branches:'  with  the  largest  I  made  a  small  enclosure 
round  it;  and  with  the  little  twigs,  added  to  some  of  our  turf, 
I  made  a  brisk  cheering  fire.  We  put  some  of  the  soup- 
cakes,  with  water,  into  our  iron  pot,  and  placed  it  over  the 
flame;  and  my  wife,  with  her  little  Francis  for  a  scullion, 
took  charge  of  preparing  the  dinner. 

In  the  meanwhile  Fritz  had  been  reloading  the  guns,  with 
one  of  which  he  "had  wandered  along  the  side  of  the  river. 
He  had  proposed  to  Ernest  to  accompany  him;  but  Ernest 
replied,  that  he  did  not  like  a  rough,  stony  walk,  and  that 
he  should  go  to  the  sea  shore.  Jack  took  the  road  towards 
a  chain  of  rocks  which  jutted  out  into  the  sea,  with  the  in- 
tention of  gathering  some  of  the  muscles  which  grew  upon 
them. 

My  own  occupation  was  now  an  endeavour  to  draw  the 
two  floating  casks  on  shore,  but  in  which  I  could  not  suc- 
ceed; for  our  place  of  landing,  though  convenient  enough 
for  our  machine,  was  too  steep  for  the  casks.  While  I  was 
looking  about  to  find  a  more  favourable  spot,  I  heard  loud 
cries  proceeding  from  a  short  distance,  and  recognised  the 
voice  of  my  son  Jack.  I  snatched  my  hatchet,  and  ran 
anxiously  to  his  assistance.     I  soon  perceived  him  up  to  his 


30  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

knees  in  water  in  a  shallow,  and  that  a  large  sea  lobster  had 
fastened  its  claws  in  his  leg.  The  poor  boy  screamed  pi- 
tiably, and  made  useless  efforts  to  disengage  himself.  I 
jumped  instantly  into  the  water;  and  the  enemy  was  no  soon- 
er sensible  of  my  approach,  than  he  let  go  his  hold,  and 
would  have  scampered  out  to  sea,  but  that  I  indulged  the 
fancy  of  a  little  malice  against  him  for  the  alarm  he  had 
caused  us.  I  turned  quickly  upon  him,  and  took  him  up  by 
the  body  and  carried  him  off,  followed  by  Jack,  who  shouted 
our  triumph  all  the  way.  He  begged  me  at  last  to  let  him 
hold  the  animal  in  his  own  hand,  that  he  might  himself  pre- 
sent so  fine  a  booty  to  his  mother.  Accordingly,  having 
observed  how  I  held  it  to  avoid  the  gripe,  he  laid  his  own 
hand  upon  it  in  exactly  the  same  manner;  but  scarcely  had 
he  grasped  it,  than  he  received  a  violent  blow  on  the  face 
from  the  lobster's  tail,  which  made  him  loose  his  hold,  and 
the  animal  fell  to  the  ground.  Jack  again  began  to  bawl 
out,  while  I  could  not  refrain  from  laughing  heartily.  In 
his  rage  he  took  up  a  stone  and  killed  the  lobster  with  a 
single  blow.  I  was  a  little  vexed  at  this  conclusion  to  the 
scene. — "This  is  what  we  call  killing  an  enemy  when  he  is 
unable  to  defend  himself,  Jack;  it  is  wrong  to  revenge  an 
injury  while  we  are  in  a  state  of  anger:  the  lobster,  it  is 
true,  had  given  you  a  bite;  but  then  you,  on  your  part, 
would  have  eaten  the  lobster.  So  the  game  was  at  least 
equal.  Another  time,  I  advise  you  to  be  both  more  prudent 
and  more  merciful." — "But  pray,  father,  let  me  carry  it  to 
my  mother, "  said  Jack,  fearless  now  of  further  warfare ;  and 
accordingly  he  carried  it  to  the  kitchen,  triumphantly  ex- 
claiming, "Mother,  mother,  a  sea  lobster! — Ernest,  a  sea 
lobster!  Where  is  Fritz?  Where  is  Fritz?  Take  care, 
Francis,  he  will  bite   you."     In  a  moment   all  were  round 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  31 

him  to  examine  the  wonderful  creature,  and  all  proclaimed 
their  astonishment  at  his  enormous  size,  while  they  observ- 
ed that  its  form  was  precisely  that  of  the  common  lobster 
so  much  in  use  in  Europe. 

"Yes,  yes,"  said  Jack,  holding  up  one  of  the  claws; 
"you  may  well  wonder  at  his  size:  this  was  the  frightful 
claw  which  seized  my  leg,  and  if  I  had  not  had  on  my  thick 
sea  pantaloons,  he  would  have  bit  it  through  and  through; 
but  I  have  taught  him  what  it  is  to  attack  me:  I  have  paid 
him  well." 

/  "Oh,  oh!  Mr.  Boaster,"  cried  I,  "you  give  a  pretty 
account  of  the  matter.  Now  mine  would  be,  that  if  I  had 
not  been  near,  the  lobster  would  have  shown  you  another 
sort  of  game ;  for  the  slap  he  gave  you  in  the  face  compel- 
led you,  I  think,  to  let  go  your  hold.  And  it  is  well  it 
should  be  thus;  for  he  fought  with  the  arms  with  which  na- 
ture had  supplied  him,  but  you  had  recourse  to  a  great  stone 
for  your  defence.  Believe  me,  Jack,  you  have  no  great 
reason  to  boast  of  the  adventure." 

Ernest,  ever  prornpted  by  his  savoury  tooth,  bawled  out 
that  the  lobster  had  better  be  put  into  the  soup,  which  would 
give  it  an  excellent  flavour:  but  this  his  mother  opposed, 
observing,  that  we  must  be  more  economical  of  our  provis- 
ions than  that,  for  the  lobster  of  itself  would  furnish  a  din- 
ner for  the  whole  family.  I  now  left  them  and  walked  again 
to  the  scene  of  this  adventure,  and  examined  the  shallow:  I 
then  made  another  attempt  upon  my  two  casks,  and  at  length 
succeeded  in  getting  them  into  it,  and  in  fixing  them  there 
securely  on  their  bottoms. 

On  my  return,  I  complimented  Jack  on  his  being  the  first 
to  procure  an  animal  that  might  serve  for  subsistence,  and 

Eromised  him,  for  his  own  share,  the  famous  claw,  which 
ad  furnished  us  with  so  lively  a  discussion. 


32  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

cc  Ah!  but  J  have  seen  something  too,  that  is  good  to  eat," 
said  Ernest;  "  and  I  should  have  got  it  if  it  had  not  been  in 
the  water,  so  that  I  must  have  wetted  my  feet " 

"Oh,  that  is  a  famous  story,"  cried  Jack:  "I  can  tell 
you  what  he  saw, — some  nasty  muscles:  why,  I  would  not 
eat  one  of  them  for  the  world. — Think  of  my  lobster!" 

"  That  is  not  true,  Jack;  for  they  were  oysters,  and  not 
muscles,  that  I  saw:  I  am  sure  of  it,  for  they  stuck  to  the 
rock,  and  I  know  they  must  be  oysters." 

"Fortunate  enough,  my  dainty  gentleman,"  interrupted 
I,  addressing  myself  to  Ernest;  "  since  you  are  so  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  place  where  such  food,  can  be  found, 
you  will  be  so  obliging  as  to  return  and  procure  us  some.  In 
such  a  situation  as  ours,  every  member  of  the  family  must 
be  actively  employed  for  the  common  good;  and,  above  all, 
none  must  be  afraid  of  so  trifling  an  inconvenience  as  wet 
feet." 

"  I  will  do  my  best,  with  all  my  heart,"  answered  Ernest ; 
"  and  at  the  same  time  I  will  bring  home  some  salt,  of  which 
I  have  seen  immense  quantities  in  the  holes  of  the  rocks, 
where  I  have  reason  to  suppose  it  is  dried  by  the  sun.  I 
tasted  some  of  it,  and  it  was  excellent.  Pray,  father,  be  so 
good  as  to  inform  me  whether  this  salt  was  not  left  there  by 
the  sea?" 

M — No  doubt  it  was,  Mr.  Reasoner,  for  where  else  do 
you  think  it  could  come  from  ?  You  would  have  done  more 
wisely  if  you  had  brought  us  a  bag  of  it,  instead  of  spending 
your  time  in  profound  reflections  upon  operations  so  simple 
and  obvious  ;  and  if  you  do  not  wish  to  dine  upon  a  soup 
without  flavour,  you  had  better  run  and  fetch  a  little 
quickly." 

He  set  off,  and  soon  returned  :  what  he  brought  had  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  33 

appearance  of  sea-salt,  but  was  so  mixed  with  earth  and 
sand,  that  I  was  on  the  point  of  throwing  it  away;  but  my 
wife  prevented  me,  and  by  dissolving,  and  afterwards  fil- 
tering some  of  it  through  a  piece  of  muslin,  we  found  it  ad- 
mirably fit  for  use. 

"  Why  could  we  not  have  used  some  sea-water,"  asked 
Jack,  "  instead  of  having  all  this  trouble?" 

"  Sea-water,"  answered  I,  "  is  more  bitter  than  salt,  and 
has,  besides,  a  sickly  taste."  While  I  was  speaking,  my 
wife  tasted  the  soup  with  a  little  stick  with  which  she  had 
been  stirring  it,  and  pronounced  that  it  was  all  the  better 
for  the  salt,  and  now  quite  ready.  "But,"  said  she, 
"  Fritz  is  not  come  in.  And  then  how  shall  we  manage  to 
eat  our  soup  without  spoons  or  dishes?  Why  did  we  not 
remember  to  bring  some  from  the  ship?" — "Because,  my 
dear,  one  cannot  think  of  every  thing  at  onco.  We  shall  be 
lucky  if  we  have  not  forgotten  even  more  important  things." 
— "  But,  indeed,"  said  she,  "  this  is  a  matter  which  cannot 
easily  be  set  to  rights.  How  will  it  be  possible  for  each  of 
us  to  raise  this  large  boiling  potto  his  lips?" 

I  soon  saw  that  my  wife  was  right.  We  all  cast  our  eyes 
upon  the  pot  with  a  sort  of  stupid  perplexity,  and  looked  a 
little  like  the  fox  in  the  fable,  when  the  stork  desires  him  to 
help  himself  from  a  vessel  with  a  long  neck.  Silence  was 
at  length  broken,  by  all  bursting  into  a  hearty  laugh  at  our 
want  of  every  kind  of  utensil,  and  at  the  thought  of  our  own 
folly,  in  not  recollecting  that  spoons  and  forks  were  things 
of  absolute  necessity. 

Ernest  observed,  that  if  we  could  but  get  some  of  the  nice 
cocoa-nuts  he  often  thought  about,  we  might  empty  them, 
and  use  the  pieces  of  the  shells  for  spoons. 

"Yes,  yes,"    replied  I;    "  if  we  could  but  get, — but  we 

3 


34  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON 

have  them  not;  and  if  wishing  were  to  any  purpose,  I  had 
as  soon  wish  at  once  for  a  dozen  silver  spoons;  but  alas!  of 
what  use  is  wishing?" 

"  But  at  least,"  said  the  boy,  "  we  can  use  some  oyster- 
shells  for  spoons." 

"  Why,  this  is  well,  Ernest,"  said  T,  "and  is  what  I  call 
a  useful  thought.  Run  then  quickly  for  some  of  them. 
But,  gentlemen,  I  give  you  notice,  that  no  one  of  you  must 
give  himself  airs  because  his  spoon  is  without  a  handle,  or 
though  he  chance  to  grease  his  fingers  in  the  soup." 

Jack  ran  first,  and  was  up  to  his  knees  in  the  water  before 
Ernest  could  reach  the  place.  Jack  tore  off  the  fish  with 
eagerness,  and  threw  them  to  slothful  Ernest,  who  put  them 
into  his  handkerchief,  having  first  secured  in  his  pocket  one 
shell  he  had  met  with  of  a  large  size  The  boys  came  back 
together  with  their  booty. 

Fritz  not  having  yet  returned,  his  mother  was  beginning 
to  be  uneasy,  when  we  heard  him  shouting  to  us  from  a 
small  distance,  to  which  we  answered  by  similar  sounds. 
In  a  few  minutes  he  was  among  us,  his  two  hands  behind 
him,  and  with  a  sort  of  would-be-melancholy  air,  which  none 
of  us  could  well  understand. — "  What  have  you  brought?" 
asked  his  brothers;  "let  us  see  your  booty,  and  you  shall 
see  ours." — "  Ah!  I  have  unfortunately  nothing." — "  What! 
nothing  at  all?"  said  I. — "Nothing  at  all,"  answered  he. 
But  now,  on  fixing  my  eye  upon  him,  I  perceived  a  smile 
of  proud"  success  through  his  assumed  dissatisfaction.  At 
the  same  instant  Jack,  having  stolen  behind  him,  exclaimed, 
"A  sucking  pig!  a  sucking  pig!  "  Fritz,  finding  his  trick 
discovered,  now  proudly  displayed  his  prize,  which  I  imme- 
diately perceived,  from  the  description  I  had  read  in  different 
books  of  travels,  was  an  agouti,  an  animal  common  in  that 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  35 

country,  and  not  a  sucking  pig,  as  the  boys  had  supposed. 
"The  agouti,"  says  M.  de  Courtills,  in  his  voyage  to  St. 
Domingo,  "  is  of  the  size  of  a  hare,  and  runs  with  the  same 
swiftness;  but  its  form  is  more  like  the  pig,  and  he  makes  the 
same  grunting  noise.  He  is  not  a  voracious  animal,  but  is 
nice  in  the  choice  of  his  food.  When  his  appetite  is  satiat- 
ed, he  buries  what  remains,  and  keeps  it  for  another  time. 
He  is  naturally  of  a  gentle  temper;  but  if  provoked,  his 
hair  becomes  erect,  he  bites,  and  strikes  the  ground  with 
his  hind  feet  like  the  rabbit,  which  he  also  resembles  in 
digging  himself  a  burrow  under  ground:  but  this  burrow  has 
but  one  entrance;  he  conceals  himself  in  it  during  the  hot- 
test part  of  the  day,  taking  care  to  provide  himself  with 
a  store  of  patates  and  bananas.  He  is  usually  taken  by 
coursing,  and  sometimes  by  dogs,  or  with  nets.  When 
it  is  found  difficult  to  seize  him,  the  sportsman  has  only 
to  whistle.  As  soon  as  the  agouti  hears  the  sound,  he  is 
instantly  still,  remains  resting  on  his  hind  feet,  and  suffers 
himself  to  be  taken.  His  flesh  is  white,  like  that  of 
the  rabbit;  but  it  is  dry,  has  no  fat,  and  never  entirely  loses 
a  certain  wild  flavour,  which  is  disagreeable  to  Europeans. 
He  is  held  in.  great  esteem  by  the  natives,  particularly  when 
the  animal  has  been  feeding  near  the  sea  on  plants  impreg- 
nated with  salt.  They  are  therefore  caught  in  great  num- 
bers, and  for  this  reason  the  species  is  much  diminished." — 
"  Where  did  you  find  him?  How  did  you  get  at  him?  Did 
he  make  you  run  a  great  way?"  asked  all  at  once  the  young 
brothers.  "  Tell  me,  tell  us  all ..."  &c.  I,  for  my  part, 
assumed  a  somewhat  serious  tone. — "I  should  have  prefer- 
red," observed  I,  "that  you  had  in  reality  brought  us 
nothing,  to  your  asserting  a  falsehood.  Never  allow  your- 
self, even  in  jest,  my  dear  boy,  to  assert  what  you  know  to 


36  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.       '     . 

be  an  untruth.  By  such  trifles  as  these,  a  habit  of  lying, 
the  most  disgusting  of  vices,  may  be  induced.  Now  then 
that  I  have  given  you  this  caution,  let  us  look  at  the  animal. 
Where  did  you  find  it?" 

Fritz  related,  that  he  had  passed  over  to  the  other  side 
of  the  river.  "Ah!"  continued  he,  "it  is  quite  another 
thing  from  this  place;  the  shore  is  low,  and  you  can  have 
no  notion  of  the  quantity  of  casks,  chests,  and  planks,  and 
different  sorts  of  things  washed  there  by  the  sea.  Ought 
we  not  to  go  and  try  to  obtain  some  of  these  treasures?" — 
"  We  will  consider  of  it  soon,"  answered  I,  "  but  first  we 
have  to  make  our  voyage  to  the  vessel,  and  fetch  away  the 
animals;  at  least  you  will  all  agree,  that  of  the  cow  we  are 
pretty  much  in  want." — "If  our  biscuit  were  soaked  in 
milk,  it  would  not  be  so  hard,"  observed  our  dainty  Ernest. 
— "  I  must  tell  you  too,"  continued  Fritz,  "that  over  on 
the  other  side  there  is  as  much  grass  for  pasturage  as  we 
can  desire;  and,  besides,  a  pretty  wood,  in  the  shade  of 
which  we  could  repose.  Why  then  should  we  remain  on 
this  barren  desert  side?" — "Patience,"  replied  I,  "there 
is  a  time  for  everything,  friend  Fritz;  we  shall  not  be  with- 
out something  to  undertake  to-morrow,  and  even  after  to- 
morrow. But,  above  all,  I  am  eager  to  know  if  you  discov- 
ered, in  your  excursion,  any  traces  of  our  ship  companions?" 
— "  Not  the  smallest  trace  of  man,  dead  or  alive,  on  land  or 
water;  but  I  have  seen  some  other  animals,  that  more  re- 
sembled pigs  than  the  one  I  have  brought  you,  but  with  feet 
more  like  those  of  the  hare ;  the  animal  I  am  speaking  of 
leaps  from  place  to  place ;  now  sitting  on  his  hind  legs,  rub- 
bing his  face  with  his  front  feet,  and  then  seeking  for  roots, 
and  gnawing  them  like  the  squirrel.  If  I  had  not  been 
afraid  of  his  escaping  me,  I  should  have  tried  to  catch  him 
with  my  hands,  for  he  appeared  almost  tame." 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  S7 

We  had  now  notice  that  our  soup  was  ready,  and  each 
hastened  to  dip  his  shell  into  the  pot,  to  get  out  a  little;  but, 
as  I  had  foreseen,  each  drew  out  a  scalded  finger,  and  it 
was  who  could  scream  the  loudest.  Ernest  was  the  only 
one  who  had  been  too  cautious  to  expose  himself  to  this  mis- 
fortune: he  quietly  took  his  muscle-shell,  as  large  and  deep 
as  a  small  saucer,  from  his,  pocket,  and  carefully  dipping  it 
into  the  pot,  drew  it  out  filled  with  as  much  soup  as  was  his 
fair  share,  and  casting  a  look  of  exultation  on  his  brothers, 
he  set  it  down  till  it  should  be  cold  enough  to  eat. 

"You  have  taken  good  care  of  yourself,  I  perceive," 
said  I.  "  But  now  answer  me,  dear  boy,  is  the  advantage 
worth  the  pains  you  take  to  be  better  off  than  your  compan- 
ions? Yet  this  is  the  constant  failing  of  your  character. 
As  your  best  friend,  I  feel  it  my  duty  to  balk  you  of  the  ex- 
pected prize;  I  therefore  adjudge  your  dish  of  delicious 
soup  to  our  faithful  followers,  Turk  and  Flora.  For  our- 
selves, we  will  all  fare  alike;  we  will  simply  dip  our  shells 
into  the  pot  till  hunger  is  appeased;  but  the  picked  dish 
for  the  dogs,  Ernest;   and  all  the  7°est  alike!'" 

This  gentle  reproach  sunk,  I  perceived,  into  his  heart; 
he  placed  the  shell,  filled  with  soup,  upon  the  ground,  and 
in  an  instant  the  dogs  had  licked  up  every  drop.  We  on 
our  parts  were  as  sharp  set  as  they,  and  every  eye  was  fix- 
ed on  the  pot,  watching  for  the  steam  to  subside  a  little,  that 
we  might  begin  dipping;  when,  on  looking  round,  we  saw 
Turk  and  Flora  standing  over  the  agouti,  gnawing  and  tear- 
ing him  fiercely  with  their  teeth  and  paws.  The  boys  all 
screamed  together:  Fritz  seized  his  gun,  and  struck  them 
with  it;  called  them  the  unkindest  names,  threw  stones  at 
them;  and  was  so  furious,  that  if  I  had  not  interfered,  it  is 
probable  he  would  have  killed  them.     He  had  already  bent 


38  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

his  gun  with  the  blows  he  had  given  them,  and  his  voice  was 
raised  so  high  as  to  be  reechoed  from  the  rocks. 

When  he  had  grown  a  little  cool,  I  seriously  remonstrated 
with  him  on  his  violence  of  temper.  I  represented  to  him 
what  distress  he  had  occasioned  his  mother  and  myself  for 
the  event  of  a  rage  so  alarming:  that  his  gun,  which  might 
have  been  so  useful,  was  now  spoiled;  and  that  the  poor  ani- 
mals, upon  whose  assistance  we  should  probably  so  much 
depend,  he  had,  no  doubt,  greatly  injured:  "  Anger,"  con- 
tinued I,  "is  always  a  bad  counsellor,  and  may  even  lead 
the  way  to  crimes:  you  are  not  ignorant  of  the  history  of 
Cain,  who,  in  a  moment  of  violent  anger,  killed  his  brother. " 
— "  Say  no  more,  my  dearest  father,"  interrupted  Fritz  in  a 
tone  of  horror. — "  Happy  am  I  to  recollect  on  this  occasion," 
resumed  I,  "that  it  was  not  human  creatures  you  treated 
thus.  But  an  angry  person  never  reasons;  he  scarcely 
knows  whom  he  attacks.  The  most  convincing  proof  of  this 
is,  that  you  just  now  fell  upon  two  dumb  animals,  incapable 
of  judgment,  and  who  most  likely  thought  that  your  agouti 
was  placed  there,  as  the  soup  had  been  before,  for  them  to 
eat.  Confess,  too,  that  it  was  vanity  which  excited  the  fu- 
rious temper  you  exhibited.  If  another  than  yourself  had 
killed  the  agouti,  you  would  have  been  more  patient  under 
the  accident."  Fritz  agreed  that  I  was  right,  and,  half 
drowned  in  tears,  entreated  ray  forgiveness. 

Soon  after  we  had  taken  our  meal,  the  sun  began  to  sink 
into  the  west.  Our  little  flock  of  fowls  assembled  round  us, 
pecking  here  and  there  what  morsels  of  our  biscuit  had  fal- 
len on  the  ground.  Just  at  this  moment  my  wife  produced 
the  bag  she  had  so  mysteriously  huddled  into  the  tub.  Its 
mouth  was  now  opened;  it  contained  the  various  sorts  of 
grain  for  feeding  poultry — barley,  peas,  oats,  &c,  and   also 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  39 

different  kinds  of  seeds  and  roots  of  vegetables  for  the  table. 
In  the  fulness  of  her  kind  heart  she  scattered  several  hand- 
fuls  at  once  upon  the  ground,  which  the  fowls  began  eagerly 
to  seize.  I  complimented  her  on  the  benefits  her  foresight 
had  secured  for  us;  but  I  recommended  a  more  sparing  use 
of  so  valuable  an  acquisition,  observing,  that  the  grain,  if 
kept  for  sowing;  would  produce  a  harvest,  and  that  we  could 
fetch  from  the  ship  spoiled  biscuit  enough  to  feed  the  fowls. 
Our  pigeons  sought  a  roosting  place  among  the  rocks;  the 
hens,  with  the  two  cocks  at  their  head,  ranged  themselves 
in  a  line  along  the  ridge  of  the  tent ;  and  the  geese  and  ducks 
betook  themselves  in  a  body,  cackling  and  quacking  as  they 
proceeded,  to  a  marshy  bit  of  ground  near  the  sea,  where 
some  thick  bushes  afforded  them  shelter. 

A  little  later,  we  began  to  follow  the  example  of  our  wing- 
ed companions,  by  beginning  our  preparations  for  repose. 
First,  we  loaded  our  guns  and  pistols,  and  laid  them  care- 
fully in  the  tent:  next,  we  assembled  together  and  joined  in 
offering  up  our  thanks  to  the  Almighty  for  the  succour  af- 
forded us,  and  supplicating  his  watchful  care  for  our  pre- 
servation. With  the  last  ray  of  the  sun  we  entered  our  tent, 
and  after  drawing  the  sail-cloth  over  the  hooks  to  close  the 
entrance,  we  laid  ourselves  down  close  to  each  other  on  the 
grass  and  moss  we  had  collected  in  the  morning. 

The  children  observed,  with  surprise,  that  darkness  came 
upon  us  all  at  once ;  that  night  succeeded  to  day  without  an 
intermediate  twilight. — "  This,"  replied  I,  "  makes  me  sus- 
pect that  we  are  not  far  from  the  equator,  or  at  least  between 
the  tropics,  where  this  is  of  ordinary  occurrence ;  for  the  twi- 
light is  occasioned  by  the  rays  of  the  sun  being  broken  in 
the  atmosphere;  the  more  obliquely  they  fall,  the  more  their 
feeble  light  is  extended  and  prolonged ;  while,  on  the  other 


40  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

hand,  the  more  perpendicular  the  rays,  the  less  their  decli- 
nation: consequently  the  change  from  day  to  night  is  much 
more  sudden  when  the  sun  is  under  the  horizon."  , 

I  looked  once  more  out  of  the  tent  to  see  if  all  was  quiet 
around  us.  The  old  cock,  awaking  at  the  rising  of  the  moon, 
chanted  our  vespers,  and  then  I  lay  down  to  sleep.  In  pro- 
portion as  we  had  been  during  the  day  oppressed  with  heat, 
we  were  now  in  the  night  inconvenienced  by  the  cold,  so 
that  we  clung  to  each  other  for  warmth.  A  sweet  sleep 
began  to  close  the  eyes  of  my  beloved  family ;  I  endeavoured 
to  keep  awake  till  I  was  sure  my  wife's  solicitude  had  yield- 
ed to  the  same  happy  state,  and  then  I  closed  my  own. 
Thanks  to  the  fatigue  we  had  undergone,  our  first  night  in 
the  desert  island  was  very  tolerably  comfortable. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Voyage  of  Discovery. 

I  was  roused  at  the  dawn  of  day  by  the  crowing  of  the 
cocks.  I  awoke  my  wife,  and  we  consulted  together  as  to 
the  occupations  we  should  engage  in.  We  agreed,  that  we 
would  seek  for  traces  of  our  late  ship  companions,  and  at 
the  same  time  examine  the  nature  of  the  soil  on  the  other 
side  of  the  river,  before  we  determined  on  a  fixed  place  of 
abode.  My  wife  easily  perceived  that  such  an  excursion 
could  not  be  undertaken  by  all  the  members  of  the  family; 
and  full  of  confidence  in  the  protection  of  Heaven,  she 
courageously  consented  to  my  proposal  of  leaving  her  with 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  41 

the  three  youngest  boys,  and  proceeding,  myself  with  Fritz 
on  a  journey  of  discovery.  I  entreated  her  not  to  lose  a 
moment  in  giving  us  our  breakfast.  She  gave  us  notice  that 
the  share  of  each  would  be  but  small,  there  being  no  more 
soup  prepared. — "  What  then,"  I  asked,  "  is  to  become  of 
Jack's  lobster?"- — "That  he  can  best  tell  you  himself," 
answered  his  mother.  "  But  now  pray  step  and  awake  the 
boys,  while  I  make  a  fire  and  put  on  some  water." 

The  children  were  soo'n  roused;  even  our  slothful  Ernest 
submitted  to  the  hard  fate  of  rising  so  early  in  the  morning. 
When  I  asked  Jack  for  his  lobster,  he  ran  and  fetched  it 
from  a  cleft  in  the  rock,  in  which  he  had  concealed  it:  "  I 
was  determined,"  said  he,  "that  the  dogs  should  not  treat 
my  lobster  as  they  did  the  agouti,  for  I  knew  them  for  a  sort 
of  gentlemen  to  whom  nothing  comes  amiss." — "  I  am  glad 
to  see,  son  Jack,"  said  I,  "  that  that  giddy  head  upon  your 
shoulders  can  be  prevailed  upon  to  reflect.  '  Happy  is  he 
who  knows  how  to  profit  by  the  misfortunes  of  others/  says 
the  proverb.  But  will  you  not  kindly  give  Fritz  the  great 
claw,  which  bit  your  leg  (though  I  promised  it  to  you),  to 
carry  with  him  for  his  dinner  in  our  journey?" 

"What  journey?"  asked  all  the  boys  at  once.  "Ah! 
we  will  go  too:  a  journey!  a  journey!  "  repeated  they, 
clapping  their  hands,  and  jumping  round  me  like  little  kids. — 
"  For  this  time,"  said  I,  "  it  is  impossible  for  all  of  you  to 
go;  we  know  not  yet  what  we  are  to  set  about,  nor  whither 
we  are  going.  Your  eldest  brother  and  myself  shall  be 
better  able  to  defend  ourselves  in  any  danger,  without  you; 
besides  that  with  so  many  persons  we  could  proceed  but 
slowly.  You  will  then  all  three  remain  with  your  mother  in 
this  place,  which  appears  to  be  one  of  perfect  safety,  and 
you  shall  keep  Flora  to  be  your  guard,  while  we  will  take 


42  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

Turk  with  us.  With  such  a  protector,  and  a  gun  well  load- 
ed, who  shall  dare  treat  us. with  disrespect?  Make  haste, 
Fritz,  and  tie  up  Flora,  that  she  may  not  follow  us;  and 
have  your  eye  on  Turk,  that  he  may  be  at  hand  to  accom- 
pany us;   and  see  the  guns  are  ready." 

At  the  word  guns,  the  colour  rose  in  the  cheeks  of  my  poor 
boy.  His  gun  was  so  bent  as  to  be  of  no  use;  he  took  it 
up  and  tried  in  vain  to  straighten  it;  I  let  him  alone  for  a 
short  time;  but  at  length  I  gave  him  leave  to  take  another, 
perceiving  with  pleasure  that  the  vexation  had  produced  a 
proper  feeling  in  his  mind.  A  moment  after,  he  attempted 
to  lay  hold  of  Flora  to  tie  her  up;  but  the  dog  recollecting 
the  blows  she  had  so  lately  received,  began  to  snarl,  and 
would  not  go  near  him.  Turk  behaved  the  same,  and  I 
found  it  necessary  to  call  with  my  own  voice,  to  induce  them 
to  approach  us.  Fritz  then  in  tears  entreated  for  some  bis- 
cuit of  his  mother,  declaring  that  he  would  willingly  go 
without  his  breakfast  to  make  his  peace  with  the  dogs;  he 
accordingly  carried  them  some  biscuit,  stroked  and  caress-' 
ed  them,  and  in  every  motion  seemed  to  ask  their  pardon. 
As  of  all  animals,  without  excepting  man,  the  dog  is  least 
addicted  to  revenge,  and  at  the  same  time  is  the  most  sen- 
sible of  kind  usage,  Flora  instantly  relented,  and  began  to 
lick  the  hands  which  fed  her;  but  Turk,  who  was  of  a  more 
fierce  and  independent  temper,  still  held  off,  and  seemed  to 
feel  a  want  of  confidence  in  Fritz's  advances. — "  Give  him 
a  claw  of  my  lobster,"  cried  Jack,  "for  I  mean  to  give  it 
all  to  you  for  your  journey." 

"  I  cannot  think  why  you  should  give  it  all,"  interrupted 
Ernest,  "for  you  need  not  be  uneasy  about  their  journey. 
Like  Robinson  Crusoe,  they  will  be  sure  enough  to  find 
some  cocoa-nuts,  which  they  will  like  much  better  than  your 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  43 

miserable  lobster:  only  think,  a  fine  round  nut,  Jack,  as 
big  as  my  head,  and  with  at  least  a  tea-cup  full  of  delicious 
sweet  milk  in  it!" 

"  Oh!  brother  Fritz,  pray  do  bring  me  some,"  cried  little 
Francis. 

We  now  prepared  for  our  departure:  we  took  each  a  bag 
for  game,  and  a  hatchet:  I  put  a  pair  of  pistols  in  the  leath- 
erv  band  round  Fritz's  waist,  in  addition  to  the  gun,  and 
provided  myself  with  the  same  articles,  not  forgetting  a 
stock  of  biscuit  and  a  flask  of  fresh  river  water.  My  wife 
now  called  us  to  breakfast  when  all  attacked  the  lobster; 
but  its  flesh  proved  so  hard,  that  there  was  a  great  deal  left 
when  our  meal  was  finished,  and  we  packed  it  for  our  jour- 
ney without  further  regret  from  any  one.  The  sea-lobster 
is  an  animal  of  considerable  size,  and  its  flesh  is  much  more 
nutritious,  but  less  delicate,  than  the  common  lobster. 

Fritz  urged  me  to  set  out  before  the  excessive  heat  came 
on. — "  With  all  my  heart,"  said  I,  "  but  we  have  forgot  one 
thing." — "What  is  that'"  asked  Fritz,  looking  round  him; 
"I  see  nothing  to  do  but  to  take  leave  of  my  mother  and 
my  brothers." — "I  know  what  it  is,"  cried  Ernest;  "we 
have  not  said  our  prayers  this  morning." — "That  is  the 
very  thing,  my  dear  boy,"  said  I.  "  We  are  too  apt  to  for- 
get God,  the  giver  of  all,  for  the  affairs  of  this  world;  and 
yet  never  had  we  so  much  need  of  his  care,  particularly  at 
the  moment  of  undertaking  a  journey  in  an  unknown  soil." 

Upon  this  our  pickle  Jack  began  to  imitate  the  sound  of 
church-bells,  and  to  call  "Borne!  borne!  bidi  bome,  bidi- 
man,  borne.  To  prayers,  to  prayers,  bome,  bome!" — 
"Thoughtless  boy!"  cried  I,  with  a  look  of  displeasure, 
"when,  oh!  when  will  you  be  sensible  of  that  sacredness  in 
devotion  that  banishes  for  the  time  every  thought  of  levity  or 


44  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

amusement  ?     Recollect  yourself,  and  let  me  not  have  again 
to  reprove  you  on  a  subject  of  so  grave  a  nature." 

In  about  an  hour  we  had  completed  the  preparations  for 
our  departure.  I  had  loaded  the  guns  we  left  behind,  and  I 
now  enjoined  my  wife  to  keep  by  day  as  near  the  boat  as 
possible,  which  in  case  of  danger  was  the  best  and  most 
speedy  means  of  escape.  My  next  concern  was  to  shorten 
the  moment  of  separation,  judging  by  my  own  feelings  those 
of  my  dear  wife;  for  neither  could  be  without  painful  appre- 
hensions of  what  new  misfortune  might  occur  on  either  side 
during  the  interval.  We  all  melted  into  tears; — T  seized 
this  instant  for  drawing  Fritz  away,  and  in  a  few  moments 
the  sobs  and  often  repeated  adieus  of  those  we  left  behind, 
died  away  in  the  noise  of  the  waves  which  we  now  approach- 
ed, and  which  turned  our  thoughts  upon  ourselves  and  the 
immediate  object  of  our  journey. 

The  banks  of  the  river  were  everywhere  steep  and  diffi- 
cult, excepting  at  one  narrow  slip  near  the  mouth  on  our 
side,  where  we  had  drawn  our  fresh  water.  The  other  side 
presented  an  unbroken  line  of  sharp,  high,  perpendicular 
rocks.  We  therefore  followed  the  course  of  the  river  till 
we  arrived  at  a  cluster  of  rocks  at  which  the  stream  formed 
a  cascade:  a  few  paces  beyond,  we  found  some  large  frag- 
ments of  rock  which  had  fallen  into  the  bed  of  the  river:  by 
stepping  upon  these,  and  making  now  and  then  some  haz- 
ardous leaps,  we  contrived  to  reach  the  other  side.  We 
proceeded  a  short  way  along  the  rock  we  ascended  in  land- 
ing, forcing  ourselves  a  passage  through  tall  grass,  which 
twined  with  other  plants,  and  were  rendered  more  capable 
of  resistance  by  being  half  dried  by  the  sun  Perceiving, 
however,  that  walking  on  this  kind  of  surface  in  so  hot  a  sun 
would  exhaust  our  strength,  we  looked  for  a  path  to  descend 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  45 

and  proceed  along  the  river,  where  we  hoped  to  meet  with 
fewer  obstacles,  and  perhaps  to  discover  traces  of  our  ship 
companions. 

When  we  had  walked  about  a  hundred  paces  we  heard  a 
loud  noise  behind  us,  as  if  we  were  pursued,  and  perceived 
a  rustling  motion  in  the  grass,  which  was  almost  as  tall  as 
ourselves.  I  was  a  good  deal  alarmed,  thinking  that  it 
might  be  occasioned  by  some  frightful  serpent,  a  tiger,  or 
other  ferocious  animal.  But  I  was  well  satisfied  with  Fritz, 
who,  instead  of  being  frightened,  and  running  away,  stood 
still  and  firm  to  face  the  danger,  the  only  motion  he  made 
being  to  see  that  his  piece  was  ready,  and  turning  himself 
to  front  the  spot  from  whence  the  noise  proceeded.  Our 
alarm  was,  however,  short;  for  what  was  our  joy  on  seeing 
rush  out,  not  an  enemy,  but  our  faithful  Turk,  whom  in  the 
distress  of  the  parting  scene  we  had  forgotten,  and  whom 
no  doubt  our  anxious  relatives  had  sent  on  to  us!  I  received 
the  poor  creature  with  lively  joy,  and  did  not  fail  to  com- 
mend both  the  bravery  and  discretion  of  my  son,  in  not 
yielding  to  even  a  rational  alarm,  and  for  waiting  till  he  was 
sure  of  the  object  before  he  resolved  to  fire:  had  he  done 
otherwise,  he  might  have  destroyed  an  animal  likely  to  af- 
ford us  various  kinds  of  aid,  and  to  contribute  by  the  kind- 
ness.  of  his  temper  to  the  pleasures  of  our  domestic  scene. 
— "  Observe,  my  dear  boy,"  said  I,  "to  what  dangers  the 
tumult  of  the  passions  exposes  us:  the  anger  which  over- 
powered you  yesterday,  and  the  error  natural  to  the  occasion 
we  have  this  moment  witnessed,  if  you  had  unfortunately 
given  way  to  it,  might  either  of  them  have  produced  an 
irretrievable  misfortune." 

Fritz  assured  me  he  was  sensible  of  the  truth  and  impor- 
tance of  my  remarks;  that  he  would  watch  constantly  over 


46  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

the  defects  of  his  temper:  and  then  he  fell  to  caressing  the 
faithful  and  interesting  animal. 

Conversing  on  such  subjects  as  these,  we  pursued  our 
way.  On  our  left  was  the  sea,  and  on  our  right  the  con- 
tinuation of  the  ridge  of  rocks  which  began  at  the  place  of 
our  landing,  and  ran  along  the  shore,  the  summit  every- 
where adorned  with  fresh  verdure  and  a  great  variety  of 
trees.  We  were  careful  to  proceed  in  a  course  as  near 
the  shore  as  possible,  casting  our  eyes  alternately  upon  its 
smooth  expanse  and  upon  the  land  in  all  directions,  to  dis- 
cover our  ship  companions,  or  the  boats  which  had  conveyed 
them  from  us;    but  our  endeavours  were  in  vain. 

Fritz  proposed  to  fire  his  gun  from  time  to  time,  that, 
should  they  be  any  where  concealed  near  us,  they  might 
thus  be  led  to  know  of  our  pursuit. 

"This  would  be  vastly  well,"  I  observed,  "if  you  could 
contrive  that  the  savages,  who  are  most  likely  not  far  distant, 
should  not  hear  the  sound,  and  come  in  numbers  upon  us." 
— "  I  am  thinking,  father,"  interrupted  Fritz,  "that  there 
is  no  good  reason  why  we  should  give  ourselves  so  much 
trouble  and  uneasiness  about  persons  who  abandoned  us  so 
cruelly,  and  thought  only  of  their  own  safety. — " 

"There  is  not  only  one  good  reason,  but  many,"  replied 
I:  "  first,  we  should  not  return  evil  for  evil;  next,  it  may 
be  in  their  power  to  assist  us;  and  lastly,  they  are  perhaps 
at  this  moment  in  the  greatest  want  of  assistance.  It  was 
their  lot  to  escape  with  nothing  but  life  from  the  ship,  if  in- 
deed they  are  still  alive,  while  we  had  the  good  fortune  to 
secure  provisions  enough  for  present  subsistence,  to  a  share 
of  which  they  are  as  fully  entitled  as  ourselves." 

"  But,  father,  while  we  are  wandering  here,  and  losing 
our  time  almost  without  a  hope  of  benefit  to  them,  might  we 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  47 

not  be  better  employed  in  returning  to  the  vessel,  and  saving 
the  animals  on  board?" 

" — When  a  variety  of  duties  present  themselves  for  our 
choice,  we  should  always  give  the  preference  to  that  which 
can  confer  the  most  solid  advantage.  The  saving  of  the 
life  of  a  man  is  a  more  exalted  action  that  the  contributing 
to  the  comfort  of  a  few  quadrupeds,  whom  we  have  already 
supplied  with  food  for  several  days;  particularly  as  the  sea 
is  in  so  calm  a  state,  that  we  need  entertain  no  apprehen- 
sion that  the  ship  will  sink  or  go  entirely  to  pieces  just  at 
present." 

My  son  made  no  reply  to  what  I  said,  and  we  seemed  by 
mutual  silent  consent  to  take  a  few  moments  for  reflection. 

When  we  had  gone  about  two  leagues,  we  entered  a  wood 
situated  a  little  further  from  the  sea:  here  we  threw  our- 
selves on  the  ground,  under  the  shade  of  a  tree,  by  the  side 
of  a  clear  running  stream,  and  took  out  some  provisions  and 
refreshed  ourselves.  We  heard  the  chirping,  singing,  and 
motion  of  birds  in  the  trees;  and  observed,  as  they  now  and 
then  came  out  to  view,  that  they  were  more  attractive  by 
their  splendid  plumage  that  by  any  charm  of  note.  Fritz 
assured  me  that  he  had  caught  a  glimpse  of  some  animals  like 
apes  among  the  bushes,  and  this  was  confirmed  by  the  rest- 
less movements  of  Turk,  who  began  to  smell  about  him,  and 
to  bark  so  loud  that  the  wood  resounded  with  the  noise. 
Fritz  stole  softly  about  to  be  sure,  and  presently  stumbled 
on  a  small  round  body  which  lay  on  the  ground:  he  brought 
it  tp  me,  observing  that  it  must  be  the  nest  of  some  bird. — 
"What  makes  you  of  that  Opinion?"  said  I.  "It  is,  I  think, 
much  more  like  a  cocoa-nut." 

"  But  I  have  read  that  there  are  some  kinds  of  birds, 
which  build  their  nests  quite  round;  and  look,  father,  how 
the  outside  is  crossed  and  twined." 


48  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"But  do  you  not  perceive  that  what  you  take  for  straws 
crossed  and  twinedbythe  beak  of  a  bird,  is  in  fact  a  coat  of 
fibres  formed  by  the  hand  of  Nature?  Do  you  not.  remem- 
ber to  have  read,  that  the  nut  of  a  cocoa  shell  is  inclosed 
within  a  round,  fibrous  covering,  which  again  is  surround" 
ed  by  a  skin  of  a  thin  and  fragile  texture?  I  see  that  in  the 
one  you  hold  in  your  hand,  this  skin  has  been  destroyed  by 
time,  which  is  the  reason  that  the  twisted  fibres  (or  inner 
covering)  are  so  apparent;  but  now  let  us  break  the  shell, 
and  you  will  see  the  nut  inside." 

We  soon  accomplished  this;  but  thenut,  alas!  from  lying 
on  the  ground,  had  perished,  and  appeared  but  little  differ- 
ent from  a  bit  of  dried  skin,  and  not  the  least  inviting  to  the 
palate. 

Fritz  was  much  amused  at  this  adventure.  "  How  I  wish 
Ernest  could  have  been  here!"  cried  he.  "  How  he  envied 
me  the  fine  large  cocoa-nuts  I  was  to  find,  and  the  whole 
tea-cup  full  of  sweet  delicious  milk  which  was  to  spring  out 
upon  me  from  the  inside! — -But,  father,  I  myself  believed 
that  the  cocoa-nut  contained  a  sweet  refreshing  liquid,  ti 
little  like  the  juice  of  almonds:  travellers  surely  tell 
untruths!" 

"Travellers  certainly  do  sometimes  tell  untruths,  but 
not,  I  believe,  on  the  subject  of  the  cocoa-nut,  which  is  well 
known  to  contain  the  liquid  you  describe,  just  before  they 
are  in  a  state  of  ripeness.  It  is  the  same  with  our  European 
nuts,  with  the  difference  of  quantity;  and  one  property  is 
common  to  both,  that  as  the  nut  ripens,  the  milk  diminishes, 
by  thickening,  and  becoming  the  same  substance  as  the 
nut.  If  you  put  a  ripe  nut  a  little  way  under  the  earth,  in 
a  good  soil,  the  kernel  will  shoot  and  burst  the  shell;  but 
if  it  remain  above  ground,  or  in  a  place  that  does  not  suit 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  49 

its  nature,  the  principle  of  vegetation  is  extinguished  by- 
internal  fermentation,  and  the  nut  perishes  as  you  have 
seen." 

M  I  am  now  surprised  that  this  principle  is  not  extinguished 
in  every  nut;  for  the  shell  is  so  hard,  it  seems  impossible 
for  a  softer  substance  to  break  it." 

"The  peach-stone  is  no  less  hard;  the  kernel,  notwith- 
standing, never  fails  to  break  it,  if  it  is  placed  in  a  well- 
nurtured  soil." 

"  Now  I  begin  to  understand.  The  peach-stone  is  divid- 
ed into  two  parts,  like  a  mussel-shell;  it  has  a  kind  of  seam 
round  it,  which  separates  of  itself  when  the  kernel  is  swelled 
by  moisture:  but  the  cocoa-nut  in  my  hand  is  not  so  divid- 
ed, and  I  cannot  conceive  of  its  separating." 

"  I  grant  that  the  cocoa-nut  is  differently  formed;  but 
you  may  see  by  the  fragments  you  have  just  thrown  on  the 
ground,  that  Nature  has  in  another  manner  stepped  in  to  its 
assistance.  Look  near  the  stalk,  and  you  will  discover 
three  round  holes,  which  are  not,  like  the  rest  of  its  surface, 
covered  with  a  hard  impenetrable  shell,  but  are  stopped  by 
a  spongy  kind  of  matter ;  it  is  through  these  that  the  kernel 
shoots." 

"  Now,  father,  I  have  the  fancy  of  gathering  all  the 
pieces  together  and  giving  them  to  Ernest,  and  telling  him 
these  particulars:  I  wonder  what  he  will  say  about  it,  and 
how  he  will  like  the  withered  nut." 

"  Now  the  fancy  of  your  father,  my  dear  boy,  would  be 
to  find  you  without  so  keen  a  relish  for  a  bit  of  mischief. 
Joke  with  Ernest,  if  you  will,  about  the  withered  nut;  but 
1  should  like  to  see  you  heal  the  disappointment  he  will 
feel,  by  presenting  him  at  last  with  a  sound  and  perfect  nut, 
provided  we  should  have  one  to  spare." 

E 


50  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

After  looking  for  some  time,  we  had  the  good  luck  to 
meet  with  one  single  nut.  We  opened  it,  and  finding  it 
sound,  we  sat  down  and  ate  it  for  our  dinner,  by  which 
means  we  were  enabled  to  husband  the  provisions  we  had 
brought.  The  nut,  it  is  true,  was  a  little  oily  and  rancid; 
yet,  as  this  was  not  a  time  to  be  nice,  we  made  a  hearty 
meal,  and  then  continued  our  route.  We  did  not  quit  the 
wood,  but  pushed  our  way  across  it,  being  often  obliged  to 
Cut  a  path  through  the  bushes  overrun  by  creeping  plants, 
with  our  hatchet.  At  length  we  reached  a  plain,  which  af- 
forded a  more  extensive  prospect  and  a  path  less  perplexed 
and  intricate. 

We  next  entered  a  forest  to  the  right,  and  soon  observed 
that  some  of  the  trees  were  of  a  singular  kind.  Fritz, 
whose  sharp  eye  was  continually  on  a  journey  of  discovery, 
went  up  to  examine  them  closely.  "  O  heavens!  father, 
what  odd  trees,  with  wens  growing  all  about  their  trunks!" 
I  had  soon  the  surprise  and  satisfaction  of  assuring  him  that 
they  were  of  the  gourd-tree  kind,  the  trunks  of  which  bear 
fruit.  Fritz,  who  had  never  heard  of  such  a  tree,  could  not 
conceive  the  meaning  of  what  he  saw,  and  asked  me  if  the 
fruit  was  a  sponge  or  a  wen. — "  We  will  see,"  I  replied, 
"  if  we  cannot  unravel  the  mystery.  Try  to  get  down  one 
of  them,  and  we  will  examine  it  minutely." 

"  I  have  got  one,"  cried  Fritz,  "  and  it  is  exactly  like  a 
gourd,  only  the  rind  is  thicker  and  harder." 

"It  then,  like  the  rind  of  that  fruit,  can  be  used  for  mak- 
ing various  utensils,"  observed  I;  "plates,  dishes,  basins, 
flasks.     We  will  give  it  the  name  of  the  gourd-tree." 

Fritz  jumped  for  joy, — "  How  happy  my  mother  will  be!" 
cried  he  in  ecstasy;  "  she  will  no  longer  have  the  vexation 
of  thinking  when  she  makes  soup,  that  we  shall  all  scald 
our  finders!" 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  51 

"What,  my  boy,  do  you  think  is  the  reason  that  this  tree 
bears  its  fruit  only  on  the  trunk  and  on  its  topmost  bran- 
ches?" 

"  I  think  it  must  be  because  the  middle  branches  are  too 
feeble  to  support  such  a  weight." 

"  You  have  guessed  exactly  right." 

"  But  are  these  gourds  good  to  eat?" 

"  At  worst  they  are,  I  believe,  harmless;  but  they  have 
not  a  very  tempting  flavour.  The  negro  savages  set  as 
much  value  on  the  rind  of  this  fruit  as  on  gold,  for  its  use 
to  them  is  indispensable.  These  rinds  serve  them  to  keep 
their  food  and  drink  in,  and  sometimes  they  even  cook  their 
victuals  in  them." 

"  Oh  father!  it  must  be  impossible  to  cook  their  victuals 
in  them;  for  the  heat  of  fire  would  soon  consume  such  a 
substance." 

"  I  did  not  say  the  rind  was  put  upon  the  fire." 

"  How  droll!  pray  how  are  victuals  to  be  cooked  without 
fire?" 

ie  JNor  did  I  say  that  victuals  could  be  cooked  without  a 
fire;  but  there  is  no  need  to  put  the  vessel  that  contains  the 
food  upon  the  fire." 

"I  have  no  idea  what  you  mean;  there  seems  to  be  ? 
miracle." 

"  So  be  it,  my  son.  A  little  tincture  of  enchantment  is 
the  lot  of  man.  When  he  finds  himself  deficient  in  intelli- 
gence, or  is  too  indolent  to  give  himself  the  trouble  to  reflect, 
he  is  driven  by  his  weakness  to  ascribe  to  a  miracle,  or  to 
witchcraft,  wliat  is,  most  likely,  nothing  but  the  most  ordi- 
nary operation  of  Art  or  Nature." 

"  Well,  father,  I  will  then  believe  in  what  you  tell  me  of 
these  rinds." 


62  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 


s 


<l  That  is,  you  will  cut  the  matter  short,  by  resolving  to 
be  sure  on  the  word  of  another:  this  is  a  good  way  to  let 
your  own  reason  lie  fallow.  Come,  come,  no  such  idleness; 
let  me  help  you  to  understand  this  amazing  phenomenon. 
When  it  is  intended  to  dress  food  in  one  of  these  rinds,  the 
process  is,  to  cut  the  fruit  into  two  equal  parts,  and  scoop 
out  the  inside;  some  water  is  put  into  one  of  the  halves,  and 
into  the  water  some  fish,  a  crab,  or  whatever  else  is  to  be 
dressed;  then  some  stones  red  hot,  beginning  with  one  at  a 
time,  are  thrown  in,  which  impart  sufficient  heat  to  the  wa- 
ter to  dress  the  food,  without  the  smallest  injury  to  the 
pot." 

"  But  is  not  the  food  spoiled  by  ashes  falling  in,  or  by 
pieces  of  the  heated  stones  separating  in  the  water?" 

t(  Certainly  it  is  not  easy  to  make  fine  sauces  or  ragouts 
in  such  a  vessel;-  but  a  dressing  of  the  meat  is  actually  ac- 
complished, and  the  negroes  and  savages,  who  are  the  per- 
sons to  make  use  of  what  is  thus  cooked,  are  not  very  deli- 
cate: but  I  can  imagine  a  tolerable  remedy  for  even  the 
objection  you  have  found.  The  food  might  be  inclosed  in  a 
vessel  small  enough  to  be  contained  in  our  capacious  half 
of  a  gourd,  and  thus  be  cooked  upon  the  principle  so  much 
used  in  chemistry;  the  application  of  a  milder  heat  than 
fire.  And  this  method  of  cooking  has  also  another  advan- 
tage, that  the  thing  contained  cannot  adhere  to  the  sides  or 
bottom  of  the  vessel." 

We  next  proceeded  to  the  manufacture  of  our  plates  and 
dishes.  I  taught  my  son  how  to  divide  the  gourd  with  a 
bit  of  string,  which  would  cut  more  equally  than  a  knife;  I 
tied  the  string  round  the  middle  of  the  gourd  as  tight  as  pos- 
sible, striking  it  pretty  hard  with  the  handle  of  my  knife, 
and  I  drew  tighter  and  tighter  till  the  gourd  fell  apart,  forming 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  53 

two  regular  shaped  bowls  or  vessels;  while  Fritz,  who  had 
used  a  knife  for  the  same  operation,  had  entirely  spoiled  his 
gourd  by  the  irregular  pressure  of  his  instrument.  I  recom- 
mended his  making  some  spoons  with  the  spoiled  rind,  as  it 
was  good  for  no  other  purpose.  I,  on  my  part,  had  soon 
completed  two  dishes  of  convenient  size,  and  some  smaller 
ones  to  serve  as  plates. 

Fritz  was  in  the  utmost  astonishment  at  my  success. — ' c  I 
cannot  imagine,  father,"  said  he,  "how  this  way  of  cutting 
the  gourd  could  occur  to  you!" 

"I  have  read  the  description  of  such  a  process,"  replied 
I,  "  in  books  of  travels;  and  also  that  such  of  the  savages 
as  have  no  knives,  and  who  make  a  sort  of  twine  from  the 
bark  of  trees  are  accustomed  to  use  it  for  this  kind  of  pur- 
pose. So  you  see  what  benefit  may  be  derived  from  read- 
ing, and  from  afterwards  reflecting  on  what  we  read." 

"And  the  flasks,  father;   in  what  manner  are  they  made  }*' 

"For  this  branch  of  their  ingenuity  they  make  prepara- 
tion a  long  time  beforehand.  If  a  negro  wishes  to  have  a 
flask  or  bottle  with  a  neck,  he  binds  a  piece  of  string,  linen, 
bark  of  a  tree,  or  any  thing  he  can  get,  round  the  part 
nearest  the  stalk  of  a  very  young  gourd;  he  draws  this  ban- 
dage so  tight,  that  the  part  at  liberty  soon  forms  itself  to  a 
round  shape,  while  the  part  which  is  confined  contracts,  and 
remains  ever  after  narrow.  By  this  method  it  is  that  they 
obtain  flasks  or  bottles  of  a  perfect  form." 

"Are  then  the  bottle-shaped  gourds  I  have  seen  in  Eu- 
rope trained  by  a  similar  preparation?" 

"No,  they  are  of  another  species,  and  what  you  have  seen 
is  their  natural  shape." 

Our  conversation  and  our  labour  thus  went  on  together. 
Fritz  had  completed  some  plates,  and  was  not  a  little  proud 


54  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

of  the  achievement.  "  Ah,  how  delighted  my  mother  will 
be  to  eat  upon  them!"  cried  he.  "But  how  shall  we  con- 
vey them  tc  her?  They  will  not,  I  fear,  bear  travelling 
well." 

"We  must  leave  them  here  on  the  sand  for  the  sun  to 
dry  them  thoroughly;  this  will  be  accomplished  by  the 
time  of  our  return  this  way,  and  we  can  then  carry  them 
with  us;  but  care  must  be  taken  to  fill  them  with  sand,  that 
they  may  not  shrink  or  warp  in  so  ardent  a  heat."  My  boy 
did  not  dislike  this  task;  for  he  had  no  great  fancy  to  the 
idea  of  carrying  such  a  load  on  our  journey  of  further  dis- 
covery. Our  sumptuous  service  of  porcelain  was  accord- 
ingly spread  upon  the  ground,  and  for  the  present  abandoned 
to  its  fate. 

We  amused  ourselves  as  we  proceeded,  in  endeavouring 
to  fashion  some  spoons  from  the  fragments  of  the  gourd-rinds. 
I  had  the  fancy  to  try  my  skill  upon  a  piece  of  cocoa-nut; 
but  I  must  needs  confess  that  what  we  produced  had  not 
the  least  resemblance  to  those  I  had  seen  in  the  Museum 
at  London,  and  which  were  shown  there  as  the  work  of  some 
of  the  islanders  of  the  Southern  Seas.  A  European  without 
instruments  must  always  find  himself  excelled  in  such  at- 
tempts by  the  superior  adroitness  and  patience  of  savages;  in 
this  instance  too  of  ourselves,  we  had  the  assistance  of 
knives,  while  the  savages  have  only  flat  stones  with  a  sharp 
edge  to  work  with. 

"My  attempt  has  been  scarcely  more  successful  than 
your  own,"  I  cried;  "and  to  eat  soup  with  either  your 
spoon  or  mine,  we  ought  to  have  mouths  extending  from  ear 
to  ear." 

"  True  enough,  father,"  answered  Fritz;  "but  it  is  not 
my  fault.     In  making  mine,  t  took  the  curve  of  my  bit  of 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  55 

rind  for  a  guide;  if  I  had  made  it  smaller,  it  would  have 
been  too  flat,  and  it  is  still  more  difficult  to  eat  with  a  shovel 
than  with  an  oyster-shell.  But  I  am  thinking  that  they  may 
serve  till  I  have  improved  upon  my  first  attempt,  and  I  am 
quite  sure  of  the  pleasure  they  will  afford  my  mother.  I 
imagine  it  pleases  God  sometimes  to  visit  his  creatures  with 
difficulties,  that  they  may  learn  to  be  satisfied  with  a  little." 

"That  is  an  excellent  remark,  my  boy,"  said  I,  "and 
gives  me  r^ore  pleasure  than  a  hundred  crowns  would  do." 
Fritz  burst  into  a  fit  of  laughter. — "  You  do  not  rate  my  re- 
mark very  high  when  you  say  this,  father,"  cried  he,  "for 
.of  what  use  would  a  hundred  crowns  be  to  you  at  present? 
If  you  had  said  a  good  soup,  or  a  hundred  cocoa-nuts,  I 
should  be  much  prouder  for  having  made  it." 

"  But  as  it  is,  my  son,  you  have  a  right  to  be  proud.  I 
am  well  pleased  to  find  you  are  beginning  to  estimate  things 
according  to  their  real  value  and  usefulness,  instead  of 
considering  them  as  good  or  bad,  like  children,  without  un- 
derstanding the  true  reason.  Money  is  only  a  means  of 
exchange  in  human  society;  but  here,  on  this  solitary  coast, 
Nature  is  more  generous  than  man,  and  asks  no  payment 
for  the  benefits  she  bestows." 

While  these  conversations  and  our  labours  had  been  go- 
ing on,  we  had  not  neglected  the  great  object  of  our  pur- 
suit,— the  making  every  practicable  search  for  our  ship 
companions.     But  our  endeavours,  alas!  were  all  in  vain. 

After  a  walk  of  about  four  leagues  in  all,  we  arrived  at  a 
spot  where  a  slip  of  land  reached  far  out  into  the  sea,  on 
which  we  observed  a  rising  piece  of  ground  or  hill.  On  a 
moment's  reflection  we  determined  to  ascend  it,  concluding 
we  should  obtain  a  clear  view  of  all  adjacent  parts,  which 
would  save  us  the  fatigue  of  further  rambles.  We  accord- 
ingly accomplished  the  design. 


56  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

We  did  not  reach  the  top  of  the  hill  without  many  efforts 
and  a  plentiful  perspiration:  but  when  there,  we  beheld  a 
scene  of  wild  and  solitary  beauty,  comprehending  a  vast  ex- 
tent of  land  and  water.  It  was,  however,  in  vain  that  we 
used  our  telescope  in  all  directions;  no  trace  of  man  appear- 
ed. A  truly  embellished  nature  presented  herself;  and  we 
were  in  the  highest  degree  sensible  of  her  thousand  charms. 
The  shore,  rounded  by  a  bay  of  some  extent,  the  bank  of 
which  ended  in  a  promontory  on  the  further  side;  the 
agreeable  blue  tint  of  its  surface;  the  sea,  gently  agitated 
by  waves  in  which  the  rays  of  the  sun  were  reflected;  the 
woods  of  variegated  hues  and  verdure,  formed  altogether  a 
picture  of  such  magnificence,  of  such  new  and  exquisite  de- 
light, that,  if  the  recollection  of  our  unfortunate  companions, 
ingulfed  perhaps  in  this  very  ocean,  had  not  intruded  to  de- 
press our  spirits,  we  should  have  yielded  to  the  ecstasy  the 
scene  was  calculated  to  inspire.  In  reality,  from  this  mo- 
ment we  began  to  lose  even  the  feeble  hope  we  had  enter- 
tained, and  sadness  stole  involuntarily  into  our  hearts.  We, 
however,  became  but  the  more  sensible  of  the  goodness  of 
the  Divine  Being,  in  the  special  protection  afforded  to  our- 
selves, in  conducting  us  to  a  home  where  there  was  no 
present  cause  for  fear  of  danger  from  without,  where  we 
had  not  experienced  the  want  of  food,  and  where  there  was 
a  prospect  of  future  safety  for  us  all.  We  had  encountered 
no  venomous  or  ferocious  animals;  and,  as  far  as  our  sight 
could  yet  reach,  we  were  not  threatened  by  the  approach  of 
savages.  I  remarked  to  Fritz,  that  we  seemed  destined  to  a 
solitary  life,  and  that  it  was  a  rich  country  which  appeared 
to  be  allotted  us  for  a  habitation; — "at  least,  my  son,  our 
habitation  it  must  be,  unless  some  vessel  should  happen  to 
put  on  shore  on  the  same  coast,  and  be  in  a  condition  to 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  57 

take  us  back  to  our  native  land.  And  God's  will  be  done!" 
added  I,  "for  he  knows  what  is  best  for  us.  Having  left 
our  native  country,  fixed  in  the  intention  of  inhabiting  some 
propitious  soil,  [See  the  Introduction],  it  was  natural  at 
first  to  encounter  difficult  'adventures.  Let  us  therefore 
consider  our  situation  as  no  disappointment  in  any  essential 
respect.  We  can  pursue  our  scheme  for  agriculture.  We 
shall  learn  to  invent  arts.     Our  only  want  is  numbers." 

"As  for  me,"  answered  Fritz,  "I  care  but  little  about 
being  so  few  of  us.  If  I  have  the  happiness  of  seeing  you 
and  my  mother  well  in  health  and  easy,  I  shall  not  give 
myself  much  uneasiness  about  those  wicked  unkind  ship 
companions  of  ours." 

"No,  my  boy;  they  were  not  all  bad  people;  and  they 
would  have  become  better  men  here,  because  not  exposed 
to  the  temptations  of  the  world.  Common  interest,  united 
exertions,  mutual  services  and  counsels,  together  with  the 
reflections  which  would  have  grown  in  such  a  state  as  this, 
tend  to  the  improvement  of  the  heart's  affections." 

"We  however  of  ourselves,"  observed  Fritz,  "form  a 
larger  society  than  was  the  lot  of  Adam  before  he  had  chil- 
dren; and,  as  we  grow  older,  we  will  perform  all  the  neces- 
sary labour,  while  you  and  my  mother  enjoy  ease  and 
quiet." 

"Your  assurances  are  as  kind  as  I  can  desire,  and  they 
encourage  me  to  struggle  with  what  hardships  may  present 
themselves.  Who  can  foresee  in  what  manner  it  may  be 
the  will  of  Heaven  to  dispose  of  us?  In  times  of  old,  God 
said  to  one  of  his  chosen,  'I  will  cause  a  great  nation  to 
descend  from  thy  loins.1  " 

"And  why  may  not  we  too  become  patriarchs,  father?" 

"Why  not?  you  ask; — and  I  have  not  now  time  to  an- 


58  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

swer.  But  come,  my  young  patriarch,  let  us  find  a  shady 
spot,  that  we  may  not  be  consumed  with  the  fierce  heat  of 
the  sun  before  the  patriarchal  condition  can  be  conferred 
upon  us.  Look  yonder  at  that  inviting  wood:  let  us  hasten 
thither  to  take  a  little  rest,  then  eat  our  dinner,  and  return 
to  our  dear  expecting  family." 

We  descended  the  hill,  and  made  our  way  to  a  wood  of 
palms,  which  I  had  just  pointed  out  to  Fritz:  our  path  was 
clothed  with  reeds,  entwined  with  other  plants,  which  great- 
ly obstructed  our  march.  We  advanced  slowly  and  cauti- 
ously, fearing  at  every  step  to  receive  a  mortal  bite  from 
some  serpent  that  might  be  concealed  among  them.  We 
made  Turk  go  before,  to  give  us  timely  notice  of  any  thing 
dangerous.  I  also  cut  a  reed-stalk  of  uncommon  length  and 
thickness,  for  my  defence  against  any  enemy.  It  was  not 
without  surprise  that  I  perceived  a  glutinous  sap  proceed 
from  the  divided  end  of  the  stalk.  Prompted  by  curiosity, 
I  tasted  this  liquid,  and  found  it  sweet  and  of  a  pleasant  fla- 
vour, so  that  not  a  doubt  remained  that  we  were  passing 
through  a  plantation  of  sugar-canes.  I  again  applied  the 
cane  to  my  lips,  and  sucked  it  for  some  moments,  and  felt 
singularly  refreshed  and  strengthened.  I  determined  not  to 
tell  Fritz  immediately  of  the  fortunate  discovery  I  had  made, 
preferring  that  be  should  find  it  out  for  himself.  As  he  was 
at  some  distance  before  me,  I  called  out  to  him  to  cut  a  reed 
for  his  defence.  This  he  did,  and,  without  any  remark, 
used  it  simply  for  a  stick,  striking  lustily  with  it  on  all  sides 
to  clear  a  passage.  The  motion  occasioned  the  sap  to  run 
out  abundantly  upon  his  hand,  and  he  stopped  to  examine  so 
strange  a  circumstance.  He  lifted  it  up,  and  still  a  larger 
quantity  escaped.  He  now  tasted  what  was  on  his  fingers. 
Oh!  then  for  the    exclamations — "Father,  father,  I  have 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROB  IN  SOW,  59 

found  some  sugar! — some  sirup!  I  have  a  sugar-cane  in  my 
band!  Run  quickly,  father!" — We  were  soon  together, 
jointly  partaking  of  the  pleasure  we  had  in  store  for  his 
dear  mother  and  the  younger  brothers.  In  the  meantime 
Fritz  kept  sucking  the  juice  of  the  single  cane  he  had  cut,  till 
his  relish  for  it  was  appeased.  I  thought  this  a  profitable 
moment  to  say  a  word  about  excesses;  of  the  wisdom  of 
husbanding  even  our  lawful  pleasures;  of  the  advantages 
of  moderation  in  our  most  rational  enjoyments. 

"But,  father,  we  will  take  home  a  good  provision  of 
sugar-canes,  however.  I  shall  only  just  taste  of  them  once 
or  twice  as  I  walk  along.  But  it  will  be  so  delightful  to 
regale  my  mother  and  my  little  brothers  with  them!" 

"I  have  no  objection;  but  do  not  take  too  heavy  a  load, 

for  you  have  other  things  to  carry,  and  we  have  yet  far  to 

~„  **' 

go-  .   -     .         . 

Counsel  was  given  in  vain.      He  persisted  in  cutting  at 

least  a  dozen  of  the  largest  canes,  tore  off  their  leaves,  tied 
them  together,  and,  putting  them  under  his  arm,  dragged 
them,  as  well  as  he  was  able,  through  thick  and  thin  to  the 
end  of  the  plantation,  We  regained  the  wood  of  palms 
without  accident;  here  we  stretched  our  limbs  in  the  shade, 
and  finished  our  repast.  We  were  scarcely  settled,  when 
a  great  number  of  large  monkeys,  terrified  by  the  sight  of 
us  and  the  barking  of  Turk,  stole  so  nimbly,  and  yet  so 
quietly  up  the  trees,  that  we  scarcely  perceived  them  till 
they  had  reached  the  topmost  parts.  From  this  height  they 
fixed  their  eyes  upon  us,  grinding  their  teeth,  making  hor- 
rible grimaces,  and  saluting  us  with  screams  of  hostile  im- 
port. Being  now  satisfied  that  the  trees  were  palms,  bearing 
cocoa-nuts,  I  conceived  the  hope  of  obtaining  some  of  this 
fruit  in  a  milky  state,  through  the  monkeys.     Fritz,  on  his 


60  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

part,  prepared  to  shoot  at  them  instantly.  He  threw  his  bur- 
dens on  the  ground,  and  it  was  with  difficulty  I,  by  pulling 
his  arm,  could  prevent  him  from  firing. 

r<  Ah,  father,  why  did  you  not  let  me  fire?  Monkeys  are 
such  malicious,  mischievous  animals!  Look  how  they  raise 
their  backs  in  derision  of  us!" 

"  And  is  it  possible  that  this  can  excite  your  vengeance, 
my  most  reasonable  Mr.  Fritz?  To  say  the  truth,  I  have 
myself  no  predilection  for  monkeys,  who,  as  you  say,  are 
naturally  prone  to  be  malicious.  But  as  long  as  an  animal 
does  us  no  injury,  or  that  his  death  can  in  no  shape  be  use- 
ful in  preserving  our  own  lives,  we  have  no  right  to  destroy 
it,  and  still  less  to  torment  it  for  our  amusement,  or  from 
an  insensate  desire  of  revenge.  But  what  will  you  say  if  I 
show  you  that  we  may  find  means  to  make  living  monkeys 
contribute  to  our  service?  See  what  I  am  going  to  do; — 
but  step  aside,  for  fear  of  your  head.  If  I  succeed,  the 
monkeys  will  furnish  us  with  plenty  of  our  much  desired 
cocoa-nuts." 

I  now  began  to  throw  some  stones  at  the  monkeys;  and 
though  T  could  not  make  them  reach  to  half  the  height  at 
which  they  had  taken  refuge,  they  showed  every  mark  of 
excessive  anger.  With  their  accustomed  trick  of  imitation, 
they  furiously  tore  off,  nut  by  nut,  all  that  grew  upon  the 
branches  near  them,  to  hurl  them  down  upon  us;  so  that  it 
was  with  difficulty  we  avoided  the  blows;  and  in  a  short 
time  a  great  number  of  cocoa-nuts  lay  on  the  ground  round 
us.  Fritz  laughed  heartily  at  the  excellent  success  of  our 
stratagem;  and  as  the  shower  of  cocoa-nuts  began  to  sub- 
side, we  set  about  collecting  them.  We  chose  a  place 
where  we  could  repose  at  our  ease,  to  feast  on  this  rich 
harvest.     We   opened  the  shells   with  a  hatchet,  but  first 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  6\ 

enjoyed  the  sucking  of  some  of  the  milk  through  the  three 
small  holes,  where  we  found  it  easy  to  insert  the  point  of 
a  knife.  The  milk  of  the  cocoa-nut  has  not  a  pleasant 
flavour;  but  it  is  excellent  for  quenching  thirst.  What  we 
liked  best  was  a  kind  of  solid  cream  which  adheres  to  the 
shell,  and  which  we  scraped  off  with  our  spoons.  We 
mixed  with  it  a  little  of  the  sap  of  our  sugar-canes,  and  it 
made  a  delicious  repast. 

Our  meal  being  finished,  we  prepared  to  leave  the  wood 
of  palms.  I  tied  all  the  cocoa-nuts  which  had  stalks 
together,  and  threw  them  across  my  shoulder.  Fritz  re- 
sumed his  bundle  qf  sugar-canes.  We  divided  the  rest  of 
the  things  between  us,  and  continued  our  way  towards  home. 


CHAPTER  IV 

■'Return  from  the  Voyage  of  Discovery.     A  Nocturnal  Alarm. 

My  poor  boy  now  began  to  complain  of  fatigue;  the  sugar- 
canes  galled  his  shoulders,  and  he  was  obliged  to  shift  them 
often.  At  last,  he  stopped  to  take  breath. — "No,"  cried 
he,  "I  never  could  have  thought  that  a  few  sugar-canes 
could  be  so  heavy.  How  sincerely  I  pity  the  poor  negroes 
who  carry  heavy  loads  of  them!  Yet  how  glad  I  shall  be 
when  my  mother  and  Ernest  are  tasting  them!" 

While  we  were  conversing  and  proceeding  onwards, 
Fritz  perceived  that  from  time  to  time  I  sucked  the  end  of 
a  sugar-cane,  and  he  would  needs  do  the  same.  It  was  in 
vain,   however,  that   he  tried;    scarcely  a  drop  of  the  sap 


62  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

reached  his  eager  lips. — "What  can  be  the  reason,"  said 
he,  "  that  though  the  cane  is  full  of  juice,  I  cannot  get  out 
a  drop?" 

"The  reason  is,"  answered  I,  "that  you  make  use 
neither  of  reflection  nor  of  your  imagination." 

"Ah!  I  recollect  now  ;  is  it  not  a  question  about  air? 
Unless  there  were  a  particular  opening  in  the  cane,  I  may 
suck  in  vain;   no  juice  will  come." 

"  You  have  explained  the  nature  of  the  difficulty;  but 
how  will  you  manage  to  set  it  right?" 

"  Father,  lend  me  your  cane  an  instant." 

"No,  no,  that  will  not  do;  what  I  wish  is,  that  you 
should  yourself  invent  the  remedy." 

"  Let  me  see:  I  imagine  that  I  have  only  to  make  a  little 
opening  just  above  the  first  knot,  and  then  the  air  can 
enter." 

"  Exactly  right.  But  tell  me  what  you  think  would  be 
the  operation  of  this  opening  near  the  first  knot;  and  in 
what  manner  can  it  make  the  juice  get  into  your  mouth?" 

"  The  pith  of  the  cane  being  completely  interrupted  in 
its  growth  by  each  knot,  the  opening  made  below  could 
have  no  effect  upon  the  part  above:  "in  sucking  the  juice,  I 
draw  in  my  breath,  and  thus  exhaust  the  air  in  my  mouth; 
the  external  air  presses  at  the  same  time  through  the  hole  I 
have  made,  and  fills  this  void:  the  juice  of  the  cane  forms 
an  obstacle  to  this  effort,  and  is  accordingly  driven  into  my 
mouth.  But  how  shall  I  manage  when  I  have  sucked  this 
part  dry,  to  get  at  the  part  above?" 

"  Oh,  oh,  Mr.  Philosopher,  what  should  prevent  you, 
who  have  been  reasoning  so  well  about  the  force  and 
fluidity  of  the  air,  from  immediately  conceiving  so  simple  a 
process  as  that  of  cutting   avvav  the   part   of  the   cane   you 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  63 

have  already  sucked  dry,  and  making  a  second  perforation 
in  the  part  above,  so  that " 

"  Oh,  I  have  it,  I  have  it,  I  understand; — btrt  if  we 
should  become  too  expert  in  the  art  of  drawing  out  the 
juice,  I  fear  but  few  of  the  canes  will  reach  our  good 
friends  in  the  tent." 

"  I  also  am  not  without  my  apprehensions,  that  of  our 
acquisition  we  shall  carry  them  only  a  few  sticks  for  fire- 
wood; for  I  must  bring  another  circumstance  to  your 
recollection:  the  juice  of  the  sugar-cane  is  apt  to  turn 
sour  soon  after  cutting,  and  the  more  certainly  in  such  heat 
as  we  now  experience;  we  may  suck  them,  therefore,  with- 
out compunction  at  the  diminution  of  their  numbers." 

"  Well,  then,  if  we  can  do  no  better  with  the  sugar-canes, 
at  least  I  will  take  them  a  good  provision  of  the  milk  of 
cocoa-nuts,  which  I  have  here  in  a  tin  bottle;  we  shall  sit 
round  on  the  grass  and  drink  it  so  deliciously!" 

"  In  this  too,  my  generous  boy,  I  fear  you  will  be  disap- 
pointed. You  talk  of  milk;  but  the  milk  of  the  cocoa-nut, 
no  less  than  the  juice  of  the  sugar-cane,  when  exposed  to 
the  air  and  heat,  turns  soon  to  vinegar.  I  would  almost 
wager  that  it  is  already  sour;  for  the  tin  bottle  which  con- 
tains it  is  particularly  liable  to  become  hot  in  the  sun." 

"O  heavens,  how  provoking!  I  must  taste  it  this  very 
minute." — The  tin  bottle  was  lowered  from  his  shoulder  in 
the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  and  he  began  to  pull  the  cork;  as 
eoon  as  it  was  loose,  the  liquid  flew  upwards,  hissing  and 
frothing  like  champagne. 

"  Bravo,  Mr.  Fritz!  you  have  manufactured  there  a  wine 
of  some  mettle.  I  must  now  caution  you  not  to  let  it  make 
you  tipsy." 

"Oh,  taste  it,  father,  pray  taste  it,  it  is  quite  delicious; 


64  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

not  the  least  like  vinegar;  it  is  rather  like  excellent  new 
wine;  its  taste  is  sweet,  and  it  is  so  sparkling!  do  take  a 
little,  father.  Is  it  not  good?  If  all  the  milk  remains  in  this 
state,  the  treat  will  be  better  even  than  I  thought." 

"  I  wish  it  may  prove  so,  but  I  have  my  fears;  its  present 
state  is  what  is  called  the  first  degree  of  fermentation;  the 
same  thing  happens  to  honey,  dissolved  in  water,  of  which 
hydromel  is  made.  When  this  first  fermentation  is  past,  and 
the  liquid  is  clear,  it  is  become  a  sort  of  wine  or  other 
fermented  liquor,  the  quality  of  which  depends  on  the 
materials  used.  By  the  application  of  heat,  there  next  re- 
sults a  second  and  more  gradual  fermentation?  which  turns 
the  fluid  into  vinegar.  But  this  may  be  prevented  by  extra- 
ordinary care,  and  by  keeping  the  vessel  that  contains  it  in 
a  cool  place.  Lastly,  a  third  fermentation  takes  place  in 
the  vinegar  itself,  which  entirely  changes  its  character,  and 
deprives  it  of  its  taste,  its  strength,  and  its  transparency. 
In  the  intense  temperature  of  this  climate,  this  triple  fer- 
mentation comes  on  very  rapidly,  so  that  it  is  not  improbable 
that,  on  entering  our  tent,  you  might  find  your  liquids 
turned  to  vinegar,  or  even  to  a  thick  liquid  of  ill  odour:  we 
may  therefore  venture  to  refresh  ourselves  with  a  portion 
of  our  booty,  that  it  may  not  all  be  spoiled.  Come,  then,  I 
drink  your  health,  and  that  of  our  dear  family.  I  find  the 
liquor  at  present  both  refreshing  and  agreeable;  but  I  am 
pretty  sure  that,  if  we  would  arrive  sober,  we  must  not 
venture  on  frequent  libations." 

Our  regale  imparted  to  our  exhausted  frames  an  increase 
of  strength  and  cheerfulness.  We  reached  the  place  where 
we  had  left  our  gourd  utensils  upon  the  sands;  we  found 
them  perfectly  dry,  as  hard  as  bone,  and  not  the  least 
misshapen.     We  now,  therefore,  could  put   them  into  our 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  65 

game  bags  conveniently  enough,  and  this  done,  we  continued 
our  way.  Scarcely  had  we  passed  through  the  little  wood 
in  which  we  breakfasted,  when  Turk  sprang  away  to  seize 
upon  a  troop  of  monkeys,  who  were  skipping  about  and 
amusing  themselves  without  observing  our  approach.  They 
were  thus  taken  by  surprise;  and  before  we  could  get  to 
the  spot,  our  ferocious  Turk  had  already  seized  one  of  them; 
it  was  a  female  who  held  a  young  one  in  her  arms,  which 
she  was  caressing  almost  to  suffocation,  and  which  incum- 
brance deprived  her  of  the  power  of  escaping.  The  poor 
creature  was  killed,  and  afterwards  devoured;  the  young 
one  hid  himself  in  the  grass;  and  looked  on,  grinding  his 
teeth  all  the  time  that  this  horrible  feat  was  performing. 
Fritz  flew  like  lightning  to  make  Turk  let  go  his  hold.  He 
lost  his  hat,  threw  down  his  tin  bottle,  canes,  &c.  but  all  in 
vain;  he  was  too  late  to  prevent  the  murder  of  the  inter- 
esting mother. 

The  next  scene  that  presented  itself  was  of  a  different 
nature,  and  comical  enough.  The  young  monkey  sprang 
nimbly  on  Fritz's  shoulders,  and  fastened  his  feet  in  the 
stiff  curls  of  his  hair;  nor  could  the  squalls  of  Fritz,  nor 
all  the  shaking  he  gave  him,  make  him  let  go  his  hold.  I 
ran  to  them,  laughing  heartily,  for  I  saw  that  the  animal 
was  too  young  to  do  him  any  injury,  while  the  panic  visible 
in  the  features  of  the  boy  made  a  ludicrous  contrast  with 
the  grimaces  of  the  monkey,  whom  I  in  vain  endeavoured  to 
disengage.  "  There  is  no  remedy,  Fritz,"  said  I,  "but  to 
submit  quietly  and  carry  him;  he  will  furnish  an  addition  to 
our  stock  of  provisions,  though  less  alluring,  I  must  needs 
confess,  than  for  vour  mother's  sake  we  could  wish.  The 
conduct  of  the  little  creature  displays  a  surprising  intelli- 
gence;  he  has  lost  his  mother,  and  he   adopts  you   for  his 

F 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  67 

father;  perhaps  he  discovered  in  you  something  of  the  air 
of  a  father  of  a  family." 

".Or  rather  the  little  rogue  found  out  that  he  had  to  do 
with  a  chicken-heart,  who  shrinks  from  the  idea  of  ill- 
treating  an  animal  which  has  thrown  itself  on  his  protection. 
— But  I  assure  you,  father,  he  is  giving  me  some  terrible 
twitches,  and  I  shall  be  obliged  to  you  to  try  once  more  to 
get  him  off." 

With  a  little  gentleness  and  management  I  succeeded.  I 
took  the  creature  in  my  arms  as  one  would  an  infant,  nor 
could  I  help  pitying  and  caressing  him.  He  was  not  larger 
than  a  kitten,  and  quite  unable  to  help  himself:  its  mother 
was  at  least  as  tall  as  Fritz. 

"What  shall  I  do  with  thee,  poor  orphan?"  cried  I; 
tc  and  how,  in  our  condition,  shall  I  be  able  to  maintain  thee? 
We  have  already  more  mouths  to  fill  than  food  to  put  into 
them,  and  our  workmen  are  too  young  to  afford  us  much 
hope  from  their  exertions." 

"  Father,"  cried  Fritz,  "  do  let  me  have  this  little  animal 
to  myself.  I  will  take  the  greatest  care  of  him:  I  will  give 
him  all  my  share  of  the  milk  of  the  cocoa-nuts  till  we  get 
our  cows  and  goats;  and  who  knows?  his  monkey  instinct 
may  one  day  assist  us  in  discovering  some  wholesome 
fruits." 

"I  have  not  the  least  objection,"  answered  I.  "You 
have  conducted  yourself  throughout  this  tragi-comic  adven- 
ture like  a  lad  of  courage  and  sensibility,  and  I  am  well 
satisfied  with  every  circumstance  of  your  behaviour.  It  is 
therefore  but  just  that  the  little  protege  should  be  given 
up  to  your  management  and  discretion;  much  will  depend 
on  your  manner  of  educating  him;  by  and  by  we  shall  see 
whether  he  will  be  fittest  to  aid  us  with  his  intelligence,  or 


68  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

to  injure  us  by  his  malice  ;  in  this  last  case  we  shall  have 
nothing  to  do  but  to  get  rid  of  him." 

While  Fritz  and  I  were  talking  about  the  young  monkey, 
Turk  was  taking  his  fill  of  the  remains  of  its  unfortunate 
mother.  Fritz  would  have  driven  him  away,  but  besides  the 
difficulty  of  restraining  him,  we  had  to  consider,  that  we 
might,  ourselves,  be  in  danger  from  the  pressing  hunger  of 
so  powerful  an  animal  ;  all  the  food  we  had  before  given 
him  in  the  day  seemed  too  little  for  the  appeasing  his  un- 
bounded appetite. 

We  now  thought  of  resuming  our  journey.  The  little 
orphan  jumped  again  on  the  shoulder  of  his  protector,  while 
I  on  my  part  relieved  my  boy  of  the  bundle  of  canes. 
Scarcely  had  we  proceeded  a  quarter  of  a  league  when 
Turk  overtook  us  full  gallop.  Fritz  and  I  received  him 
without  the  usual  marks  of  kindness,  and  reproached  him 
with  the  cruel  action  he  had  committed,  as  if  he  could  feel 
and  understand  us;  but  he  showed  no  sign  of  concern  about 
the  matter,  following  quietly  behind  Fritz  with  an  air  of 
cool  and  perfect  satisfaction.  The  young  monkey  appeared 
uneasy  from  seeing  him  so  near,  and  passed  round  and  fixed 
himself  on  his  protector's  bosom,  who  did  not  long  bear  so 
great  an  inconvenience  without  having  recourse  to  his  in- 
vention for  a  remedy.  He  tied  some  string  round  Turk's 
body  in  such  a  way,  as  to  admit  of  the  monkey's  being  fas- 
tened on  his  back  with  it,  and  then  in  a  tone  of  genuine 
pity,  he  said,  "  Now,  Mr.  Turk,  since  you  had  the  cruelty 
to  destroy  the  mother,  it  is  for  you  to  take  care  of  her 
child."  At  first  the  dog  was  restive,  and  resisted  ;  but  by 
degrees,  partly  by  menaces,  and  partly  by  caresses,  we  suc- 
ceeded in  gaining  his  good  will,  and  he  quietly  consented 
to  carry  the  little  burden  ;   and  the  young  monkey,  who  also 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  69 

i 

had  made  some  difficulties,  at  length  found  himself  perfect- 
ly accommodated.  Fritz  put  another  string  round  Turk's 
neck,  by  which  he  might  lead  him,  a  precaution  he  used  to 
prevent  him  from  going  out  of  sight.  I  must  confess,  we 
had  not  the  sin  of  too  great  haste  to  answer  for,  so  that  I 
had  leisure  for  amusing  myself  with  the  idea,  that  we  should 
arrive  at  our  home  with  something  of  the  appearance  of 
keepers  of  rare  animals  for  show.  I  enjoyed  in  foresight 
the  jubilations  of  our  young  ones  when  they  should  see  the 
figure  we  made. — "  Ah!"  cried  Fritz,  "  I  promise  you, 
brother  Jack  will  draw  materials  enough  from  the  occasion 
for  future  malicious  jokes." — "  Do  you  then,  my  son,"  said 
I,  "like  your  admirable  mother,  who  never  fails  to  make 
allowance  for  the  buoyant  spirits  of  youth,  and  is  ever  ready 
to  find  a  charitable  motive  in  every  thing.  As  for  the 
question  of  Turk,  let  me  observe  that  it  would  in  our  situa- 
tion be  dangerous  to  teach  our  dogs  not  to  attack  and  kill, 
if  they  can,  what  unknown  animals  they  meet  with.  You 
will  see  that  he  will  soon  regard  your  little  monkey  as  a 
member  of  our  family  ;  already  he  is  content  to  carry  him 
on  his  back.  But  we  must  not  discourage  him  in  his  fancy 
for  attacking  wild  beasts:  Heaven  bestowed  the  dog  on 
man  tp  be  his  safeguard  and  ally,  and  the  horse  the  same. 
How  conspicuous  is  the  goodness  of  the  Almighty,  in  the 
natural  dispositions  he  has  bestowed  on  these  useful  crea- 
tures, who  discover  so  much  affection  for  man,  and  so  easily 
submit  to  the  slavery  of  serving  him!  A  man  on  horseback, 
and  accompanied  by  a  troop  of  well-conditioned  dogs,  need 
not  fear  any  species  of  wild  beasts,  not  even  the  lion,  nor 
the  hyaena;  he  may  even  baffle  the  voracious  rapacity  of 
the  tiger." 

"  I  feel  how  fortunate  we  are  in  the  possession  of  two 


70  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

such  creatures  :  but  what  a  pity  that  the  horses  we  had  on 
board  died  during  our  voyage,  and  leave  us  with  only  an 
ass!" 

"  Let  us  take  care  how  we  treat  even  our  ass  with  dis- 
dain. I  wish  we  had  him  safe  on  land.  Fortunately  he  is 
large,  and  strong,  and  not  of  the  common  kind.  We  may 
train  him  to  do  us  the  same  services  as  are  performed  by  the 
horse  ;  and  it  is  not  improbable  that  he  will  even  improve 
under  our  care,  and  from  the  excellent  pasture  he  will  find 
in  this  climate." 

In  such  conversation  as  this,  on  subjects  equally  interest- 
ing to  both,  we  forgot  the  length  of  our  journey,  and  soon 
found  ourselves  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  and  near  our  fam- 
ily, before  we  were  aware.  Flora  from  the  other  side  an- 
nounced our  approach  by  a  violent  barking,  and  Turk  replied 
so  heartily,  that  his  motions  unseated  his  little  burden,  who 
in  his  fright  jumped  the  length  of  his  string  from  his  back 
to  Fritz's  shoulder,  which  he  could  not  afterwards  be  pre- 
vailed upon  to  leave.  Turk,  who  began  to  be  acquainted 
with  the  country,  ran  off  to  meet  his  companion,  and  shortly 
after,  our  much-loved  family  appeared  in  sight,  with  demon- 
strations of  unbounded  joy  at  our  safe  return.  They  ad- 
vanced along  by  the  course  of  the  river,  till  they  on  one 
side,  and  we  on  the  other,  had  reached  the  place  we  cross- 
ed in  the  morning.  We  repassed  it  again  in  safety,  and 
threw  ourselves  into  each  other's  arms.  Scarcely  had  the 
young  ones  joined  their  brother,  than  they  again  began 
their  joyful  exclamations  :  "A  monkey,  a  live  monkey! 
Papa,  mamma,  a  live  monkey!  Oh,  how  delightful!  how 
happy  shall  we  be!  How  did  you  catch  him  ?  What  a  droll 
face  he  has!" — "  He  is  very  ugly,"  said  little  Francis,  half 
afraid  to  touch  him. — "  He  is  much   prettier   than  you," 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  71 

letorted  Jack  ;  "  only  see,  he  is  laughing  :  I  wish  I  could 
see  him  eat." — "  Ah!  if  we  had  but  some  cocoa-nut!"  cried 
Ernest  ;  "  could  you  not  find  any  ?  Are  they  nicer  " — 
"  Have  you  brought  me  any  milk  of  almonds  ?"  asked 
Francis. — "  Have  you  met  with  any  unfortunate  adven- 
ture?" interrupted  my  wife.  In  this  manner,  questions  and 
exclamations  succeeded  to  each  other  with  such  rapidity  as 
not  to  leave  us  time  to  answer  them. 

At  length,  when  all  became  a  little  tranquil,  I  answered 
them  thus  :  "  Most  happy  am  I  to  return  to  you  again,  my 
best  beloved,  and  God  be  praised!  without  any  new  misfor- 
tune. We  have  even  the  pleasure  of  presenting  you  with 
many  valuable  acquisitions  ;  but  in  the  object  nearest  my 
heart,  the  discovery  of  our  ship  companions,  we  have  en- 
tirely failed," 

"  Since  it  pleases  God  that  it  should  be  so,"  said  my 
wife,  "  let  us  endeavour  to  be  content,  and  let  us  be  grate- 
ful to  him  for  having  saved  us  from  their  unhappy  fate,  and 
for  having  once  more  brought  us  all  together:  I  have  had 
much  uneasiness  about  your  safety,  and  imagined  a  thousand 
evils  that  might  beset  you.  The  day  appeared  an  age.  But 
now  I  see  you  once  more  safe  and  well!  But  put  down  your 
burdens;  we  will  all  help  you;  for  though  we' have  not 
spent  the  day  in  idleness,  we  are  less  fatigued  than  you. 
Quick  then,  my  boys,  and  take  the  loads  from  your  father 
and  your  brother.  Now  then  sit  down,  and  tell  us  your 
adventures." 

Jack  received  my  gun,  Ernest  the  cocoa-nuts,  Francis 
the  gourd-rinds,  and  my  wife  my  game-bag.  Fritz  distribu- 
ted the  sugar-canes,  and  put  his  monkey  on  the  back  of 
Turk,  to  the  great  amusement  of  the  children,  at  the  same 
time  begging  Ernest  to  relieve  him  of  his  gun.     But  Ernest, 


72  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON 

ever  careful  of  his  ease,  assured  him,  that  the  large  heavy- 
bowls  with  which  he  was  loaded  were  the  most  he  had 
strength  to  carry.  His  mother,  a  little  too  indulgent  to  his 
lazy  humour,  relieved  him  of  these;  and  thus  we  proceeded 
altogether  to  our  tent. 

Fritz  whispered  me,  that  if  Ernest  had  known  what  the 
large  heavy  bowls  were,  he  would  not  so  readily  have  parted 
with  them.  Then  turning  to  his  brother,  "Why,  Ernest," 
cried  he,  "do  you  know  that  these  bowls  are  cocoa-nuts, 
your  dear  cocoa-nuts,  and  full  of  the  sweet  nice  milk  you 
have  so  much  wished  to  taste?" 

"  What,  really  and  truly  cocoa-nuts,  brother?  Pray  give 
them  to  me,  mother;  I  will  carry  them,  if  you  please,  and  I 
can  carry  the  gun  too." 

"No,  no,  Ernest,"  answered  his  mother,  "  you  shall  not 
tease  us  with  more  of  your  long-drawn  sighs  about  fatigue: 
a  hundred  paces,  and  you  would  begin  again."  Ernest 
would  willingly  have  asked  his  mother  to  give  him  the  cocoa- 
nuts,  and  take  the  gun  herself,  but  this  he  was  ashamed  to 
do:  "I  have  only,"  said  he,  "to  get  rid  of  these  sticks, 
and  carry  the  gun  in  my  hand." 

"  I  would  advise  you  not  to  find  the  sticks  heavy,  either," 
said  Fritz  drily;  "  I  know  you  will  be  sorry  if  you  do;  and 
for  this  good  reason — the  sticks  are  sugar-canes!" 

"Sugar-canes!  Sugar-canes!"  exclaimed  they  all;  and, 
surrounding  Fritz,  made  him  give  them  full  instructions  on 
the  sublime  art  of  sucking  sugar-canes. 

My  wife  also,  who  had  always  entertained  a  high  respect 
for  the  article  of  sugar  in  her  household  management,  was 
quite  astonished,  and  earnestly  entreated  we  would  inform 
her  of  all  particulars.  I  gave  her  an  account  of  our  jour- 
ney and  our  new  acquisitions,  which  I  exhibited  one  after  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON  73 

other  for  her  inspection.  !No  one  of  them  afforded  her  more 
pleasure  than  the  plates  and  dishes,  because,  to  persons  of 
decent  habits,  they  were  articles  of  indispensable  necessity. 
We  now  adjourned  to  our  kitchen,  and  observed  with  plea- 
sure the  preparations  for  an  excellent  repast.  On  one  side 
of  the  fire  was  a  turnspit,  which  my  wife  had  contrived  by. 
driving  two  forked  pieces  of  wood  into  the  ground,  and  plac- 
ing a  long  even  stick,  sharpened  at  one  end,  across  them. 
By  this  invention  she  was  enabled  to  roast  fish,  or  other 
food,  with  the  help  of  little  Francis,  who  was  entrusted  with 
the  care  of  turning  it  round  from  time  to  time.  On  the  oc- 
casion of  our  return,  she  had  prepared  us  the  treat  of  a 
goose,  the  fat  of  which  ran  down  into  some  oyster-shelk 
placed  there  to  serve  the  purpose  of  a  dripping-pan.  There 
was,  besides,  a  dish  offish,  which  the  little  ones  had  caught; 
and  the  iron  pot  was  upon  the  lire,  provided  with  a  good 
soup,  the  odour  of  which  increased  our  appetite.  By  the 
side  of  these  most  exhilarating  preparations  stood  one  of  the 
casks  which  we  had  recovered  from  the  sea,  the  head  of 
which  my  wife  had  knocked  out,  so  that  it  exposed  to  our  view 
a  cargo  of  the  finest  sort  of  Dutch  cheeses,  contained  in 
round  tins.  All  this  display  was  made  to  excite  the  appetite 
of  the  two  travellers,  who  had  fared  but  scantily  during  the 
day;  and  I  must  needs  observe,  that  the  whole  was  very 
little  like  such  a  dinner  as  one  should  expect  to  see  on  a 
desert  island. 

"What  you  call  a  goose,"  said  my  wife,  "  is  a  kind  of 
wild  bird,  and  is  the  booty  of  Ernest,  who  calls  him  by  a 
singular  name,  and  assures  me  that  it  is  good  to  eat." 

"Yes,  father,  I  believe  that  the  bird  which  I  have  caught 
is  a  kind  of  penguin,  or  we  might  distinguish  him  by  the 
surname  of  Stupid.     He  showed  himself  to  be  a  bird  so 

G 


74  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

destitute  of  even  the  least  degree  of  intelligence,  that  I  kill- 
ed him  with  a  single  blow  with  my  stick." 

"  What  is  the  form  of  his  feet,  and  of  his  beak?  "asked  I. 

"His  feet  are  formed  for  swimming;  in  other  words,  he 
is  what  is  called  web-footed;  the  beak  is  long,  small,  and 
a  little  curved  downwards:  I  have  preserved  his  head  and 
neck,  that  you  might  examine  it  yourself;  it  reminds  -me 
exactly  of  the  penguin,  described  as  so  stupid  a  bird  in  my 
book  of  natural  history." 

"  You  now  then  perceive,  my  son,  of  what  use  it  is 
to  read,  and  to  extend  our  knowledge,  particularly  of  the 
productions  of  nature:  by  this  study  and  knowledge,  we  are 
enabled  to  recognise  at  the  moment,  the  objects  which 
chance  throws  in  our  way,  whether  we  have  seen  them 
before  or  not.  Tell  me  now  what  birds  there  are  with  feet 
like  those  which  you  have  just  described,  and  which  are  so 
formed  to  enable  the  creature  to  strike  the  water  and  pre- 
vent himself  from  sinking?" 

"There  are  the  man-of-war  bird,  cormorants,  and  peli- 
cans, father." 

"  By  what  mark  do  you  distinguish  the  kind  to  which  you 
just  now  said  the  penguin  or  Stupid  belonged?" 

"  Upon  my  word,"  interrupted  his  mother,  "  I  must  give 
the  answer  myself;  and  it  shall  be  a  petition,  that  you  will 
take  some  other  time  for  your  catechism  on  birds:  when 
once  you  begin  a  subject,  one  never  sees  the  end  of  it. 
Now  to  my  mind  there  is  a  time  for  every  thing:  Ernest 
killed  the  bird,  and  was  able  to  tell  his  kind;  we  on  our 
parts  shall  eat  him;  what  more  therefore  is  necessary?  Do 
you  not  see,  husband,  that  the  poor  child  is  thinking  all  the 
while  of  his  cocoa-nuts?  Let  me  intercede  on  his  behalf, 
tind  prevail  upon  you  to  let  him  have  the  pleasure  of  ex- 
£  mining  and  tasting  them." 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  15 

""Ah!  thank  you,  my  good  mother;  I  shall  be  very  glad 
if  papa  will  consent.1" 

Father. — Well,  well,  you  have  my  full  permission.  But 
first  you  will  be  obliged  to  learn  from  Fritz  the  best  manner 
of  opening  them,  so  as  to  preserve  the  milk:  and  one  word 
more ;  I  recommend  to  you  not  to  forget  the  young  monkey, 
who  has  no  longer  his  mother's  milk  for  food. 

Jack. — I  cannot  prevail  upon  him  to  taste  a  bit:  I  have 
offered  him  every  thing  we  have. 

Father. — This  is  not  surprising,  for  he  has  not  yet  learned 
how  to  eat;  you  must  feed  him  with  the  milk  of  cocoa-nuts 
till  we  can  procure  something  more  suitable. 

Jack. — I  will  give  the  poor  little  creature  my  share  with 
all  my  heart. 

Fmest. — I  have,  however,  the  greatest  desire  to  taste 
this  milk  myself,  just  to  know  what  it  is  like. 

"And  so  have  I,"  said  the  little  Francis. 

"However,  gentlemen,  the  monkey  must  live,"  cried 
Jack  a  little  maliciously. 

"And  we  and  our  children  must  live  too,"  answered 
their  mother:  "  Come  then,  the  supper  is  ready,  and  the 
cocoa-nuts  shall  be  for  the  dessert." 

We  seated  ourselves  on  the  ground;  my  wife  had  placed 
each  article  of  the  repast  in  one  of  our  new  dishes,  the  neat 
appearance  of  which  exceeded  all  our  expectations.  My 
sons  had  not  patience  to  wait,  but  had  broken  the  cocoa- 
nuts,  and  already  convinced  themselves  of  their  delicious 
flavour;  and  then  they  fell  to  making  spoons  with  the  frag- 
ments of  the  shells.  The  little  monkey,  thanks  to  the  kind 
temper  of  Jack,  had  been  served  the  first,  and  each  amused 
himself  with  making  him  suck  the  corner  of  his  pocket 
handkerchief,  dipped  in  the  milk  of  the  cocoa-nut.  He  ap- 
peared delighted  with  the  treatment  he  received,   and  we 


76  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON*. 

remarked  with  satisfaction,  that  we  should  most  likely  be 
able  to  preserve  him. 

The  boys  were  preparing  to  break  some  more  of  the  nuts 
with  the  hatchet,  after  having  drawn  out  the  milk  through 
the  three  little  holes,  when  I  pronounced  the  word  halt,  and 
bade  them  bring  me  a  saw; — the  thought  had  struck  me, 
that  by  dividing  the  nuts  carefully  with  this  instrument,  the 
two  halves,  when  scooped,  would  remain  with  the  form  of 
tea  cups  or  basins  already  made  to  our  hands.  Jack,  who 
was  on  every  occasion  the  most  active,  brought  me  the  saw. 
I  performed  my  undertaking  in  the  best  manner  I  could, 
and  in  a  short  time  each  of  us  was  provided  with  a  con- 
venient receptacle  for  food.  My  wife  put  the  share  of  soup 
which  belonged  to  each  into  the  new  basins.  The  excellent 
creature  appeared  delighted  that  we  should  no  longer  be 
under  the  necessity,  as  before,  of  scalding  our  fingers  by 
dipping  into  the  pot;  and  I  firmly  believe,  that  never  did 
the  most  magnificent  service  of  china  occasion  half  the 
pleasure  to  its  possessor,  as  our  utensils,  manufactured  by 
our  own  hands  from  gourds  and  cocoa-nuts,  excited  in  the 
kind  heart  of  my  wife.  Fritz  asked  me  if  he  might  not 
invite  our  company  to  taste  his  fine  champagne,  which  he 
said  would  not  fail  to  make  us  all  the  merrier. — "  I  have  not 
the  least  objection,"  answered  I,  "but  remember  to  taste 
it  yourself  before  you  serve  it  to  your  guests." — He  ran  to 
draw  out  the  stopple  and  to  taste  it — "  How  unfortunate!" 
said  he,  "  it  is  already  turned  to  vinegar." 

"What,  is  it  vinegar!"  exclaimed  my  wife:  "How 
lucky!  it  will  make  the  most  delicious  sauce  for  our  bird, 
mixed  with  the  fat  which  has  fallen  from  it  in  roasting,  and 
will  be  as  good  a  relish  as  a  salad."  No  sooner  said  than 
done.     This   vinegar    produced    from   cocoa-nut    proved   a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  77 

corrective  of  the  wild  and  fishy  flavour  of  the  penguin. 
The  same  sauce  improved  our  dish  of  fish  also.  Each 
boasted  most  of  what  he  himself  had  been  the  means  of 
procuring:  it  was  Jack  and  Francis  who  had  caught  the 
fish  in  one  of  the  shallows,  while  Ernest  was  employed  with 
very  little  trouble  to  himself  in  securing,  his  penguin  the 
Stupid.  My  poor  wife  had  herself  performed  the  most 
difficult  task  of  all,  that  of  rolling  the  cask  of  Dutch  cheeses 
into  the  kitchen,  and  then  knocking  out  its  head. 

By  the  time  we  had  finished  our  meal,  the  sun  was  re- 
tiring from  our  view;  and  recollecting  how  quickly  the 
night  would  fall  upon  us,  we  were  in  great  haste  to  regain 
our  place  of  rest.  My  wife  had  considerately  collected  a 
tenfold  quantity  of  dry  grass,  which  she  had  spread  in  the 
tent,  so  that  we  anticipated  with  joy  the  prospect  of  stretching 
our  limbs  on  a  substance  somewhat  approaching  to  the 
quality  of  mattrasses,  while,  the  night  before,  our  bodies 
seemed  to  touch  the  ground.  Our  flock  of  fowls  placed 
themselves  as  they  had  done  the  preceding  evening;  we 
said  our  prayers,  and,  with  an  improved  serenity  of  mind, 
lay  down  in  the  tent,  taking  the  young  monkey  with  us,  who 
was  become  the  little  favourite  of  all.  Fritz  and  Jack  con- 
tended for  a  short  time  which  should  enjoy  the  honour  of 
his  company  for  the  night;  and  it  was  at  last  decided  that 
he  should  be  laid  between  them;  after  which,  each  would 
have  a  hand  in  covering  him  carefully,  that  he  might  not 
catch  cold.  We  now  all  lay  down  upon  the  grass,  in  the 
order  of  the  night  before,  myself  remaining  last  to  fasten 
the  sail-cloth  in  front  of  the  tent;  when,  heartily  fatigued 
by  the  exertions  of  the  day,  I,  as  well  as  the  rest,  soon  fell 
into  a  profound  and  refreshing  sleep. 

But  I  had  not  long  enjoyed  this  pleasing  state,  when  I 


78  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

was  awaked  by  the  motion  of  the  fowls  on  the  ridge  of  the 
tent,  and  by  a  violent  barking  of  our  vigilant  safe-guards, 
the  dogs.  I  was  instantly  on  my  legs;  my  wife  and  Fritz, 
who  had  also  been  alarmed,  got  up  also:  we  each  took  a 
gun,  and  sallied  forth. 

The  dogs  continued  barking  with  the  same  violence,  and 
at  intervals  even  howled.  We  had  not  proceeded  many 
steps  from  the  tent,  when  to  our  surprise  we  perceived  by 
the  light  of  the  moon  a  terrible  combat.  At  least  a  dozen 
of  jackalls  had  surrounded  our  brave  dogs,  who  defended 
themselves  with  the  stoutest  courage.  Already  the  fierce 
champions  had  laid  three  or  four  of  their  adversaries  on  the 
ground,  while  those  which  remained  began  a  timid  kind  of 
moan,  as  if  imploring  pity  and  forbearance. — Meanwhile 
they  did  not  the  less  endeavour  to  entangle  and  surprise  the 
dogs,  thus  thrown  off  their  guard,  and  so  secure  to  them- 
selves the  advantage.  But  our  watchful  combatants  were 
not  so  easily  deceived;  they  took  good  care  not  to  let  the 
enemy  approach  them  too  nearly. 

I,  for  my  part,  had  apprehended  something  worse  than 
jackalls. — "  We  shall  soon  manage  to  set  these  gentlemen 
at  rest,"  said  I.  "  Let  us  fire  both  together,  my  boy;  but 
let  us  take  care  how  we  aim,  for  fear  of  killing  the  dogs; 
mind  how  you  fire,  that  you  may  not  miss,  and  I  shall  do 
the  same."  We  fired,  and  two  of  the  intruders  fell  instantly 
dead  upon  the  sands.  The  others  made  their  escape;  but 
we  perceived  it  was  with  great  difficulty,  in  consequence, 
no  doubt,  of  being  wounded.  Turk  and  Flora  afterwards 
pursued  them,  and  put  the  finishing  stroke  to  what  we  had 
begun;  and  thus  the  battle  ended:  but  the  dogs,  true 
Caribbees  by  nature,  made  a  hearty  meal  on  the  flesh  of 
their  fallen  enemies.     My  wife,  seeing  all  quiet,  entreated 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  79 

as  to  lie  down  again  and  finish  our  night's  sleep:  but  Fritz 
asked  me  to  let  him  first  drag  the  jackall  towards  the  tent, 
that  he  might  exhibit  him  the  next  morning  to  his  brothers. 
1  however  observed  to  Fritz,  that  if  Turk  and  Flora  were 
still  hungry,  we  ought  to  give  them  this  last  jackall  in  addi- 
tion, as  a  recompense  for  their  courageous  behaviour. 

We  had  now  done  with  this  affair.  The  body  of  the 
jackall  was  left  on  the  rock,  by  the  side  of  the  tent,  in  which 
were  the  little  sleepers,  who  had  not  once  awaked  during 
the  whole  of  the  scene  which  had  been  passing.  Having, 
therefore,  nothing  further  to  prevent  us,  we  lay  down  by 
their  side  till  day  began  to  break,  and  till  the  cocks,  with 
their  shrill  morning  salutation,  awoke  us  both. — The  child- 
ren being  still  asleep,  afforded  us  an  excellent  opportunity 
to  consult  together  respecting  the  plan  we  should  pursue  for 
the  ensuing  day. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Return  to  the   Wreck. 

I  broke  a  silence  of  some  moments,  with  observing  to 
my  wife,  that  I  could  not  but  view  with  alarm  the  many 
cares,  and  exertions  to  be  made! — "In  the  first  place,  a 
journey  to  the  vessel.  This  is  of  absolute  necessity;  at 
least,  if  we  would  not  be  deprived  of  the  cattle  and  other 
useful  things,  all  of  which  from  moment  to  moment  we  risk 
losing  by  the  first  heavy  sea.  What  ought  we  to  resolve 
upon  ?     For  example,  should  not  our  very  first  endeavour 


80  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

be  the  contriving  a  better  sort  of  habitation,  and  a  more 
secure  retreat  from  wild  beasts,  also  a  separate  place  for 
our  provisions?  I  own  I  am  at  a  loss  what  to  begin  first.5' 

"All  will  fall  into  the  right  order  by  degrees,"  observed 
my  wife;  ■*  patience  and  regularity  in  our  plans  will  go  as 
far  as  actual  labour.  I  cannot,  I  confess,  help  shuddering 
at  the  thought  of  this  voyage  to  the  vessel;  but  if  you  judge 
it  to  be  of  absolute  necessity,  it  cannot  be  undertaken  too 
soon.  In  the  meanwhile,  nothing  that  is  immediately  un- 
der my  own  care  shall  stand  still,  I  promise  you.  Let  us 
not  be  over  anxious  about  to-morrow:  '  sufficient  unto  the 
day  is  the  evil  thereof.'  These  were  the  words  of  the  true 
friend  of  mankind,  and  let  us  use  so  wise  a  counsel  for  our 
own  benefit." 

"  I  will  follow  your  advice,"  said  I,  "  and  without  further 
loss  of  time.  You  shall  stay  here  with  the  three  youngest 
boys;  and  Fiitz,  being  so  much  stronger  and  more  intelli- 
gent than  the  others,  shall  accompany  me  in  the  under- 
taking." 

At  this  moment  I  started  from  my  bed,  crying  out  loudly 
and  briskly,  "  Get  up,  children,  get  up;  it  is  almost  light, 
and  we  have  some  important  projects  for  to-day;  it  would 
be  a  shame  to  suffer  the  sun  to  find  us  still  sleeping,  we 
who  are  to  be  the  founders  of  a  new  colony!" 

At  these  words  Fritz  sprang  nimbly  out  of  the  tent,  while 
the  young  ones  began  to  gape  and  rub  their  eyes,  to  get  rid 
of  their  sleepiness.  Fritz  ran  to  visit  his  jackall,  which 
during  the  night  had  become  cold  and  perfectly  stiff.  He 
fixed  him  upon  his  legs,  and  placed  him  like  a  sentinel  at 
the  entrance  of  the  tent,  joyously  anticipating  the  wonder 
and  exclamations  of  his  brothers  at  so  unexpected  an  ap- 
pearance.    But  no  sooner  had  the  dogs  caught  a  sight  of 


THE    SWISS    FATMILY    R0BINSQN.  81 

him,  than  they  began  a  howl,  and  set  themselves  in  motion 
to  fall  upon  him  instantly,  thinking  he  was  alive.  Fritz 
had  enough  to  do  to  restrain  them,  and  succeeded  only  by 
dint  of  coaxing  and  perseverance. 

In  the  meantime,  their  barking  had  awaked  the  younger 
boys,  and  they  ran  out  of  the  tent,  curious  to  know  what 
could  be  the  occasion.  Jack  was  the  first  who  appeared, 
with  the  young  monkey  on  his  shoulders;  but  when  the 
little  creature  perceived  the  jackall,  he  sprang  away  in 
terror,  and  hid  himself  at  the  furthest  extremity  of  the  grass 
which  composed  our  bed,  and  covered  himself  with  it  so 
completely,  that  scarcely  could  the  tip  of  his  nose  be  seen. 

The  children  were  much  surprised  at  the  sight  of  a  yellow- 
coloured  animal  standing  without  motion  at  the  entrance  of 
the  tent. — "  Oh  heavens!"  exclaimed  Francis,  and  stepping 
back  a  few  paces  for  fear;  "it  is  a  wolf!" — "  No,  no," 
said  Jack,  going  near  the  jackall,  and  taking  one  of  his 
paws;  "it  is  a  yellow  dog,  and  he  is  dead;  he  does  not 
move  at  all." — "  It  is  neither  a  dog  nor  a  wolf,"  interrupted 
Ernest  in  a  consequential  tone;  "do  you  not  see  that  it  is 
the  golden  fox?" — "  Best  of  all,  most  learned  professor!" 
now  exclaimed  Fritz.  "So  you  can  tell  an  agouti,  when 
you  see  him,  but  you  cannot  tell  a  jackall;  for  jackall  is  the 
creature  you  see  before  you,  and  I  killed  him  myself  in  the 
night!" 

Ernest. — In  the  night,  you  say,  Fritz.  In  your  sleep,  I 
suppose 

Fritz. — No,  Mr.  Ernest;  not  in  my  sleep,  as  you  so  good- 
naturedly  suppose,  but  broad  awake,  and  on  the  watch  to 
protect  you  from  wild  beasts!  But  I  cannot  wonder  at  this 
mistake  in  one  who  does  not  know  the  difference  between  a 
jackall  and  a  golden  fox! 


82  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

Ernest. — You  would  not  have  known  it  either,  if  papa 
had  not  told  you 

"  Come,  come,  my 'lads,  I  will  have  no  disputes,"  inter- 
rupted I.  "  Fritz,  you  are  to  blame  in  ridiculing  your 
brother  for  the  mistake  he  made.  Ernest,  you  are  also  to 
blame  for  indulging  that  little  peevishness  of  yours.  But 
as  to  the  animal,  you  all  are  right  and  all  are  wrong;  for 
he  partakes  at  once  of  the  nature  of  the  dog,  the  wolf,  and 
the  fox."  The  boys  in  an  instant  became  friends;  and  then 
followed  questions,  answers,  and  wonder  in  abundance. — 
"And  now,  my  boys,  let  me  remind  you,  that  he  who  begins 
the  day  without  first  addressing  the  Almighty,  ought  to  ex- 
pect neither  success  nor  safety  in  his  undertakings.  Let  us 
therefore  acquit  ourselves  of  this  duty  before  we  engage  in 
other  occupations." 

Having  finished  our  prayers,  the  next  thing  thought  of 
was  breakfast;  for  the  appetites  of  young  boys  open  with 
their  eyes.  To-day  their  mother  had  nothing  to  give  them 
for  their  morning  meal  but  some  biscuit,  which,  was  so  hard 
and  dry,  that  it  was  with  difficulty  we  could  swallow  it. 
Fritz  asked  for  a  piece  of  cheese  to  eat  with  it,  and  Ernest 
cast  some  searching  looks  on  the  second  cask  we  had  drawn 
out  of  the  sea,  to  discover  whether  it  also  contained  Dutch 
cheeses.  In  a  minute  he  came  up  to  us,  joy  sparkling  in 
his  eyes:  "  Father,"  said  he,  "if  we  had  but  a  little  butter 
spread  upon  our  biscuit,  do  you  not  think  it  would  improve 
it?" 

"  That  indeed  it  would;  but — if — if;  these  never-ending 
ifs  are  but  a  poor  dependence.  For  my  part,  I  had  rather 
eat  a  bit  of  cheese  with  my  biscuit  at  once,  than  think  ofi/s, 
which  bring  us  so  meagre  a  harvest. 

Ernest.- — Perhaps,  though,  the  ifs   may  be  found  to  be 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  83 

worth  something,  if  we  were  to  knock  out  the  head  of  this 
cask. 

Father. — What  cask,  my  boy?  and  what  are  you  talking 
of? 

Ernest. — I  am  talking  of  this  cask,  which  is  filled  with  ex- 
cellent salt  butter.  I  made  a  little  opening  in  it  with  a 
knife;  and  see,  I  got  out  enough  to  spread  nicely  upon  this 
piece  of  biscuit. 

"  That  glutton  instinct  of  yours  for  once  is  of  some  gener- 
al use,"  answered  I.  "  But  now  let  us  profit  by  the  event. 
Who  will  have  some  butter  on  his  biscuit?"  The  boys  sur- 
rounded the  cask  in  a  moment,  while  I  was  in  some  perplex- 
ity as  to  the  best  method  of  getting  at  the  contents.  Fritz 
was  for  taking  off  the  topmost  hoop,  and  thus  loosening  one 
of  the  ends.  But  this  I  objected  to,  observing  that  the 
great  heat  of  the  sun  would  not  fail  to  melt  the  butter,  which 
would  then  run  out,  and  be  wasted.  The  idea  occurred  to 
me,  that  I  would  make  a  hole  in  the  bottom  of  the  cask, 
sufficiently  large  to  take  out  a  small  quantity  of  butter  at  a 
time ;  and  I  set  about  manufacturing  a  little  wooden  shovel, 
to  use  for  the  purpose.  All  this  succeeded  vastly  well,  and 
we  sat  down  to  breakfast,  some  biscuits  and  a  cocoa-nut 
shell  full  of  salt  butter  being  placed  upon  the  ground,  round 
which  we  all  assembled.  We, toasted  our  biscuit,  and, 
while  it  was  hot,  applied  the  butter,  and  contrived  to  make 
a  hearty  breakfast. 

"  One  of  the  things  we  must  not  forget  to  look  for  in  the 
vessel,"  said  Fritz,  "is  a  spiked  collar  or  two  for  our  dogs, 
as  a  protection  to  them  should  they  again  be  called  upon 
to  defend  themselves  from  wild  beasts,  which  I  fear  is  too 
probable  will  be  the  case." 

"Oh!"  says  Jack,  "I  can  make  spiked  collars,  if  my 
mother  will  give  me  a  little  help." 


84  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"That  I  wiil,  most  readily,  my  boy;  for  I  should  like  to 
see  what  new  fancy  has  come  into  your  head,"  cried  she. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  pursued  I,  "as  many  new  inventions  as  you 
please;  you  cannot  better  employ  your  time;  and  if  you 
produce  something  useful,  you  will  be  rewarded  with  the 
commendations  of  all.  But  now  for  work.  You,  Mr. 
Fritz,  who,  from  your  superior  age  and  discretion,  enjoy 
the  high  honour  of  being  my  privy -counsellor,  must  make 
haste  and  get  yourself  ready,  and  we  will  undertake  to-day 
our  voyage  to  the  vessel,  to  bring  away  whatever  may  be 
possible.  You  younger  boys  will  remain  here,  under  the 
wing  of  your  kind  mother:  I  hope  I  need  not  mention,  that 
I  rely  on  your  perfect  obedience  to  her  will,  and  general 
good  behaviour." 

While  Fritz  was  getting  the  boat  ready,  I  looked  about  for 
a  pole,  and  tied  a  piece  of  white  linen  to  the  end  of  it:  this 
I  drove  into  the  ground,  in  a  place  where  it  would  be  visi- 
ble from  the  vessel ;  and  I  concerted  with  my  wife,  that  in 
case  of  any  accident  that  should  require  my  prompt  assist- 
ance, they  should  take  down  the  pole  and  fire  a  gun  three 
times  as  a  signal  of  distress,  in  consequence  of  which  I  would 
immediately  turn  back.  But  I  gave  her  notice,  that  there 
being  so  many  things  to  accomplish  on  board  the  vessel,  it 
was  probable  that  we  should  not  otherwise  return  at  night; 
in  which  case  I,  on  my  part,  also  promised  to  make  signals. 
My  wife  had  the  good  sense  and  the  courage  to  consent  to 
my  plan.  She,  however,  extorted  from  me  a  promise  that 
we  should  pass  the  night  in  our  tubs,  and  not  on  board  the 
ship.  We  took  nothing  with  us  but  our  guns  and  a  recruit 
of  powder  and  shot,  relying  that  we  should  find  provisions 
on  board;  yet  I  did  not  refuse  to  indulge  Fritz  in  the  wish 
he  expressed,  to  take  the  young  monkey,  as  he  wished  to  see 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  85 

I 

how  the  little  creature  would  like  some  milk  from  the  cow, 
or  from  a  goat. 

We  embarked  in  silence,  casting  our  anxious  looks  on  the 
beloved  objects  we  were  quitting.  Fritz  rowed  steadily,  and 
I  did  my  best  to  second  his  endeavours,  by  rowing  from 
time  to  time,  on  my  part,  with  the  oar  which  served  me  for  a 
rudder.  When  we  had  gone  some  distance,  I  remarked  a 
current  which  was  visible  a  long  way.  To  take  advantage 
of  this  current,  and  to  husband  our  strength  by  means  of  it, 
was  my  first  care.  Little  as  I  knew  of  the  management  of 
sea  affairs,  I  succeeded  in  keeping  our  boat  in  the  direction 
in  which  it  ran,  by  which  means  we  were  drawn  gently  on, 
till  at  length  the  gradual  diminution  of  its  force  obliged  us 
again  to  have  recourse  to  our  oars;  but  our  arms  having 
now  rested  for  some  time,  we  were  ready  for  new  exertions. 
A  little  afterwards  we  found  ourselves  safely  arrived  at  the 
cleft  of  the  vessel,  and  fastened  our  boat  securely  to  one  of 
its  timbers. 

Fritz  the  first  thing  went  with  his  young  raonkey  on  his 
arm  to  the  main  deck,  where  he  found  all  the  animals  we  had 
left  on  board  assembled.  I  followed  him,  well  pleased  to  ob- 
serve the  generous  impatience  he  showed  to  relieve  the 
wants  of  the  poor  abandoned  creatures,  who,  one  and  all, 
now  saluted  us  by  the  sounds  natural  to  its  species!  It  was 
not  so  much  the  want  of  food,  as  the  desire  of  seeing  their 
accustomed  human  companions,  which  made  them  manifest 
their  joy  in  this  manner,  for  they  had  a  portion  of  the  food 
and  water  we  had  left  them  still  remaining.  The  first 
thing  we  did  was  to  put  the  young  monkey  to  one  of  the 
goats,  that  he  might  suck;  and  this  he  did  with  such  evident 
pleasure,  and  such  odd  grimaces,  that  he  afforded  us  much 
amusement. — We  next  examined  the  food  and  water  of  the 


86  THE    SWJSS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

other  animals,  taking  away  what  was  half  spoiled,  and  ad- 
ding a  fresh  supply,  that  no  anxiety  on  their  account  might 
interrupt  our  enterprise.  Nor  did  we  neglect  the  care  of 
renewing  our  own  strength  by  a  plentiful  repast. 

While  we  were  seated,  and  appeasing  the  calls  of  hunger, 
Fritz  and  I  consulted  what  should  be  our  first  occupation; 
when,  to  my  surprise,  the  advice  he  gave  was,  that  we 
should  contrive  a  sail  for  our  boat. — "  In  the  name  of  Hea- 
ven," cried  I,  "  what  makes  you  think  of  this  at  so  critical 
a  moment,  when  we  have  so  many  things  of  indispensable 
necessity  to  arrange?" — "  True,  father,"  said  Fritz;  "  but 
let  me  confess  that  I  found  it  very  difficult  to  row  for  so  long 
a  time,  though  I  assure 'you  I  did  my  best,  and  did  not  spare 
my  strength. — I  observed  that,  though  the  wind  blew  strong 
in  my  face,  the  current  still  carried  us  on.  Now,  as  the 
current  will  be  of  no  use  in  our  way  back,  I  was  thinking 
that  we  might  make  the  wind  supply  its  place.  Our  boat 
will  be  very  heavy  when  we  have  loaded  it  with  all  the  things 
we  mean  to  take  away,  and  I  am  afraid  I  shall  not  be  strong 
enough  to  row  to  land:  so  do  you  not  think  that  a  sail  would 
be  a  good  thing  just  now?" 

"Ah  ha,  Mr.  Fritz!  You  wish  to  spare  yourself  a  little 
trouble,  do  you  ?  But  seriously,  I  perceive  much  good  sense 
in  your  argument,  and  feel  obliged  to  my  privy  counsellor 
for  his  good  advice.  The  best  thing  we  can  do  is,  take  to 
care  and  not  overload  the  boat,  and  thus  avoid  the  danger 
of  sinking,  or  of  being  obliged  to  throw  some  of  our  stores 
overboard.  We  will,  however,  set  to  work  upon  your  sail; 
it  will  give  us  a  little  trouble.     But  come,  let  us  begin." 

I  assisted  Fritz  to  carry  a  pole  strong  enough  for  a  mast, 
and  another  not  so  thick,  for  a  sailyard.  I  directed  him  to 
make  a  hole  in  a  plank  with  a  chisel,  large  enough  for  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  ^    87 

mast  to  stand  upright  in  it.  I  then  went  to  the  sail-room, 
and  cut  a  large  sail  down  to  a  triangular  shape:  I  made 
holes  along  the  edges,  and  passed  cords  through  them.  We 
then  got  a  pulley,  and  with  this  and  some  cgrds,  and  some 
contrivance  in  the  management  of  our  materials,  we  produ- 
ced a  sail. 

Fritz,  after  taking  observations  through  a  telescope  of 
what  was  passing  on  land,  and  which  we  had  already  done 
several  times,  imparted  the  agreeable  tidings  that  all  was 
still  well  with  our  dear  family.  He  had  distinguished  his 
mother  walking  tranquilly  along  the  shore.  He  soon  after 
brought  me  a  small  streamer,  which  he  had  cut  from  a  piece 
of  linen,  and  which  he  entreated  me  to  tie  to  the  extremity 
of  the  mast,  as  much  delighted  with  the  streamer  as  with  the 
sail  itself.  He  gave  to  our  machine  the  name  of  The  Deliv- 
erance; and  in  speaking  of  it,  instead  of  calling  it  a  boat,  it 
had  now  always  the  title  of  the  little  vessel. 

"But  now,  father,"  said  Fritz,  looking  kindly  on  me  as 
lie  spoke,  "  as  you  have  eased  me  of  the  labour  of  rowing, 
it  is  my  turn  to  take  care  of  you.  I  am  thinking  to  make  you 
a  better  contrived  rudder;  one  that  would  enable  you  to 
steer  the  boat  both  with  greater  ease  and  greater  safety." — 
"  Your  thought  would  be  a  very  good  one,"  said  I,  "but 
that  I  am  unwilling  to  lose  the  advantage  of  being  able  to 
proceed  this  way  and  that,  without  being  obliged  to  veer. 
I  shall  therefore  fix  our  oars  in  such  a  manner  as  to  enable 
me  to  steer  the  raft  from  either  end."  Accordingly,  I  fixed 
bits  of  wood  to  the  stem  and  stern  of  the  machine,  in  the 
nature  of  grooves,  which  were  calculated  to  spare  us  a  great 
deal  of  trouble. 

During  these  exertions  the  day  advanced,  and  I  saw  that 
we  should  be  obliged  to  pass  the  night  in  our  tubs,  without 


88  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

much  progress  in  our  task  of  emptying  the  vessel.  We  had 
promised  our  family  to  hoist  a  flag  as  a  signal,  if  we  passed 
the  night  from  home,  and  we  found  the  streamer  precisely 
the  thing  we  wanted  for  this  purpose. 

We  employed  the  remnant  of  the  day  in  emptying  the 
tubs  of  the  useless  ballast  Of  stones,  and  putting  in  their 
place  what  would  be  of  service,  such  as  nails,  pieces  of 
cloth,  and  different  kinds  of  utensils,  &c.  &c.  The  Vandals 
themselves  could  not  have  made  a  more  complete  pillage 
than  we  had  done.  The  prospect  before  us  of  an  entire  sol- 
itude, made  us  devote  our  attention  to  the  securing  as  much 
powder  and  shot  as  we  could,  as  a  means  of  catching 
animals  for  food,  and  of  defending  ourselves  against  wild 
beasts  to  the  latest  moment  possible.  Utensils  for  every 
kind  of  workmanship,  of  which  there  was  a  large  provision 
in  the  ship,  were  also  objects  of  incalculable  value  to  us. 
The  vessel,  which  was  now  a  wreck,  had  been  sent  out  as  a 
preparation  for  the  establishment  of  a  colony  in  the  South 
Seas,  and  had  been  provided  with  a  variety  of  stores  not 
commonly  included  in  the  loading  of  a  ship.  Among  the 
rest,  care  had  been  taken  to  have  on  board  considerable 
numbers  of  European  cattle ;  but  so  long  a  voyage  had  prov- 
ed unfavourable  to  the  oxen  and  the  horses,  the  greatest 
part  of  which  had  died,  and  the  others  were  in  so  bad  a  condi- 
tion, that  it  had  been  found  necessary  to  destroy  them.  The 
quantity  of  useful  things  which  presented  themselves  in  the 
store-chambers  made  it  difficult  for  me  to  select  among  them, 
and  I  much  regretted  that  circumstances  compelled  me  to 
leave  some  of  them  behind.  Fritz,  however,  already  medi- 
tated a  second  visit;  but  we  took  good  care  not  to  lose  the 
present  occasion  for  securing  knives  and  forks  and  spoons, 
and  a  complete  assortment  of  kitchen  utensils.     In  the  cop- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  89 

tain's  cabin  we  found  some  services  of  silver,  dishes  and 
plates  of  high-wrought  metal,  and  a  little  chest  filled  with 
bottles  of  many  sorts  of  excellent  wine.  Each  of  these  we 
put  into  our  boat.  We  next  descended  to  the  kitchen, 
which  we  stripped  of  gridirons,  kettles,  pots  of  all  kinds,  a 
small  roasting-jack,  &c.  Uur  last  prize  was  a  chest  of 
choice  eatables,  intended  for  the  table  of  the  officers,  con- 
taining Westphalia  hams,  Bologna  sausages,  and  other 
savoury  food.  I  took  good  care  not  to  forget  some  little 
sacks  of  maize,  of  wheat,  and  other  grain,  and  some  pota- 
toes. We  next  added  such  implements  for  husbandry  as  we 
could  find; — shovels,  hoes,  spades^  rakes,  harrows,  &.c.  &c. 
Fritz  reminded  me  that  we  had  found  sleeping  on  the  ground 
both  cold  and  hard,  and  prevailed  upon  me  to  increase  our 
cargo  by  some  hammccs,  and  a  certain  number  of  blankets: 
and  as  guns  had  hitherto  been  the  source  of  his  pleasures, 
he  added  such  as  he  could  find  of  a  particular  costliness  or 
structure,  together  with  some  sabres  and  clasp-knives.  The 
last  articles  we  took  were  a  barrel  of  sulphur,  a  quantity  of 
ropes,  some  small  string,  and  a  large  roll  of  sail-cloth.  The 
vessel  appeared  to  us  to  be  in  so  wretched  a  condition,  that 
the  least  tempest  must  make  her  go  to  pieces.  It  was  .then 
quite  uncertain  whether  we  should  be  able  to  approach  her 
any  more. 

Our  cargo  was  so  large,  that  the  tubs  were  filled  to  the 
very  brim,  and  no  inch  of  the  boat's  room  was  lost.  The 
first  and  last  of  the  tubs  were  reserved  for  Fritz  and  me  to 
seat  ourselves  in  and  row  the  boat,  which  sunk  so  low  in  the 
water,  that,  if  the  sea  had  not  been  quite  calm,  we  should 
have  been  obliged  to  ease  her  of  some  of  the  loading:  we, 
however,  used  the  precaution  of  putting  on  our  swimming- 
jackets,  for  fear  of  any  misfortune. 

H 


90  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

It  will  easily  be  imagined  that  the  day  had  been  labori- 
ously employed.  Night  suddenly  surprised  us,  and  we  lost 
all  hope  of  returning  to  our  family  the  same  evening.  A 
large  blazing  fire  on  the  shore  soon  after  greeted  our  sight, 
— the  signal  agreed  upon  for  assuring  us  that  all  was  well, 
and  to  bid  us  close  our  eyes  in  peace.  We  returned  the 
compliment,  by  tying  four  lanterns  with  lights  in  them  to  our 
mast-head.  This  was  answered,  on  their  part,  by  the  firing 
of  two  guns;  so  that  both  parties  had  reason  to  be  satisfied 
and  easy. 

After  offering  up  our  earnest  prayers  for  the  safety  of  all, 
and  not  without  some  apprehension  for  our  own,  we  resign- 
ed ourselves  to  sleep  in  our  tubs,  which  appeared  to  us  safer 
than  the  vessel.  Our  night  passed  tranquilly  enough:  my 
boy  Fritz  slept  as  soundly  as  if  he  had  been  in  a  bed;  while 
I,  haunted  by  the  recollection  of  the  nocturnal  visit  of  the 
jackalls,  could  neither  close  my  eyes,  nor  keep  them  from 
the  direction  of  the  tent.  I  had,  however,  great  reliance 
that  my  valiant  dogs  would  do  their  duty,  and  was  thankful 
to  Heaven  for  having  enabled  us  to  preserve  so  good  a  pro- 
tection. 


m 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  91 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Ji   Troop  of  Animals  in  Cork  Jackets. 

Early  the  next  morning,  though  scarcely  light,  I  mounted 
the  vessel,  hoping  to  gain  a  sight  of  our  beloved  companions 
through  a  telescope.  Fritz  prepared  a  substantial  breakfast 
of  biscuit  and  ham;  but  before  we  sat  down,  we  recollected 
that  in  the  captain's  cabin  we  had  seen  a  telescope  of  a  much 
superior  size  and  power,  and  Ave  speedily  conveyed  it  to  the 
deck.  While  this  was  doing,  the  brightness  of  the  day  had 
come  on.  I  fixed  my  eye  to  the  glass,  and  discovered  my 
wife  coming  out  of  the  tent  and  looking  attentively  towards 
the  vessel,  and  at  the  same  moment  perceived  the  motion  of 
the  flag  upon  the  shore.  A  load  of  anxiety  was  thus  taken 
from  my  heart;  for  I  had  the  certainty  that  all  were  in  good 
health,  and  had  escaped  the  dangers  of  the  night. — "  Now 
that  I  have  had  a  sight  of  your  mother,"  said  I  to  Fritz, 
'*  my  next  concern  is  for  the  animals  on  board;  let  us  en- 
deavor to  save  the  lives  of  some  of  them,  at  least,  and  to 
take  them  with  us." 

"  Would  it  be  possible  to  make  a  raft,  to  get  them  all  up- 
on it,  and  in  this  way  get  them  to  shore?"  asked  Fritz. 

"  But,  what  a  difficulty  in  making  it,  and  how  could  we 
induce  a  cow,  an  ass,  and  a  sow,  either  to  get  upon  a  raft, 
or,  when  there,  to  remain  motionless  arid  quiet?  The  sheep 
and  goats  one  might  perhaps  find  means  to  remove,  they 
being  of  a  more  docile  temper;  but  for  the  larger  animals,  I 
am  at  a  loss  how  to  proceed." 


92  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"  My  advice,  father,  is  to  tie  a  long  rope  round  the  sow's 
neck,  and  throw  her  without  ceremony  into  the  sea:  her 
immense  weight  will  be  sure  to  sustain  her  above  water; 
and  we  can  draw  her  after  the  boat." 

"Your  idea  is  excellent;  but  unfortunately  it  is  of  no 
use  but  for  the  pig;  and  she  is  the  one  I  care  the  least 
about  preserving." 

"  Then  here  is  another  idea,  father:  let  us  tie  a  swimming- 
jacket  round  the  body  of  each  animal,  and  contrive  to 
throw  one  and  all  into  the  water;  you  will  see  that  they 
will  swim  like  fish,  and  we  can  draw  them  after  us  in  the 
same  manner." 

"  Right,  very  right,  my  boy;  your  invention  is  admirable: 
let  us  therefore  not  lose  a  moment  in  making  the  experi- 
ment." 

We  hastened  to  the  execution  of  our  design:  we  fixed  a 
jacket  on  one  of  the  lambs,  and  threw  it  into  the  sea;  and 
full  of  anxious  curiosity,  I  followed  the  poor  beast  with  my 
eyes.  He  sunk  at  first,  and  I  thought  him  drowned;  but 
he  soon  re-appeared,  shaking  the  water  from  his  head,  and 
in  a  few  seconds  he  had  learned  completely  the  art  of  swim- 
ming. After  another  interval,  we  observed  that  he  appeared 
fatigued,  gave  up  his  efforts,  and  suffered  himself  to  be 
borne  along  by  the  course  of  the  water,  which  sustained  and 
conducted  him  to  our  complete  satisfaction. — "  Victory!" 
exclaimed  I,  hugging  my  boy  with  delight:  "these  useful 
animals  are  all  our  own;  let  us  not  lose  a  moment  in  adopt- 
ing the  same  means  with  those  that  remain;  but  take  care 
not  to  lose  our  little  lamb."  Fritz  now  would  have  jumped 
into  the  water  to  follow  the  poor  creature,  who  was  still 
floating  safely  on  the  surface;  but  I  stopped  him  till  I  had 
seen  him  tie  on  a  swimming-jacket.     He  took  with  him  a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  93 

rope,  first  making  a  slip  knot  in  it,  and,  soon  overtaking  the 
lamb,  threw  it  round  his  neck,  and  drew  him  back  to  our 
boat;   and  then  took  him  out  of  the  water. 

We  next  got  four  small  water-butts.  I  emptied  them, 
and  then  carefully  closed  them  again;  I  united  them  with  a 
large  piece  of  sail-cloth,  nailing  one  end  to  each  cask.  I 
strengthened  this  with  a  second  piece  of  sail-cloth,  and  this 
contrivance  I  destined  to  support  the  cow  and  the  ass,  two 
casks  to  each,  the  animal  being  placed  in  the  middle  with  a 
cask  on  either  side.  I  added  a  thong  of  leather,  stretching 
from  the  casks  across  the  breast  and  haunches  of  the 
animal,  to  make  the  whole  secure;  and  thus,  in  less  than 
an  hour,  both  my  cow  and  my  ass  were  equipped  for  swim- 
ming. 

It  was  next  the  turn  of  the  smaller  animals:  of  these, 
the  sow  gave  us  the  most  trouble ;  we  were  first  obliged  to 
put  her  on  a  muzzle  to  prevent  her  biting;  and  then  we 
tied  a  large  piece  of  cork  under  her  body.  The  sheep  and 
goats  were  more  accommodating,  and  we  had  soon  accou- 
tred them  for  our  adventure.  And  now  we  had  succeeded 
in  assembling  our  whole  company  on  the  deck,  in  readiness 
for  the  voyage:  we  tied  a  cord  to  either  the  horns  or  the 
neck  of  each  animal,  and  to  the  other  end  of  the  cord  a 
piece  of  wood  similar  to  the  mode  used  for  marking  nets, 
that  it  might  be  easy  for  us  to  take  hold  of  the  ropes,  and 
so  draw  the  animal  to  us  if  it  should  be  necessary.  We 
struck  away  some  more  of  the  shattered  pieces  of  wood 
from  the  fissure  of  the  vessel,  by  which  we  were  again  to 
pass.  We  began  our  experiment  with  the  ass,  by  conduct- 
ing him  as  near  as  possible  to  the  brink  of  the  vessel,  and 
then  suddenly  shoving  him  off.  He  fell  into  the  water, 
and  for  a  moment  disappeared;  but  we  soon  saw  him  rise, 


94  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

and  in  the  action  of  swimming  between  his  two  barrels,  with 
a  grace  which  really  merited  our  commendation. 

Next  came  the  cow's  turn;  and  as  she  was  infinitely  more 
valuable  than  the  ass,  my  fears  increased  in  due  proportion. 
The  ass  had  swum  so  courageously,  that  he  was  already  at 
a  considerable  distance  from  the  vessel,  so  that  there  was 
sufficient  room  for  our  experiment  on  the  cow.  We  had 
more  difficulty  in  pushing  her  overboard,  but  she  reached 
the  water  in  as  much  safety  as  the  ass  had  done  before ;  she 
did  not  sink  so  low  in  it,  and  was  no  less  perfectly  sustained 
by  the  empty  barrels;  and  she  made  her  way  with  gravity, 
and,  if  I  may  so  express  it,  a  sort  of  dignified  composure. 
According  to  this  method  we  proceeded  with  our  whole 
troop,  throwing  them  one  by  one  into  the  water,  where  by 
and  by  they  appeared  in  a  group  floating  at  their  ease,  and 
seemingly  well  content.  The  sow  was  the  only  exception; 
she  became  quite  furious,  set  up  a  loud  squalling,  and  strug- 
gled with  so  much  violence  in  the  water,  that  she  was  carri- 
ed to  a  considerable  distance,  but  fortunately  in  a  direction 
towards  the  landing-place  we  had  in  view.  We  had  now  not 
a  moment  to  lose.  Our  last  act  was  to  put  on  our  cork- 
jackets;  and  then  we  descended  without  accident  through 
the  cleft,  took  our  station  in  the  boat,  and  were  soon  in  the 
midst  of  our  troop  of  quadrupeds.  We  carefully  gathered 
all  the  floating  bits  of  wood,  and  fastened  them  to  the  stern 
of  the  machine,  and  thus  drew  them  after  us.  When  every 
thing  was  adjusted,  and  our  company  in  order,  we  hoisted 
our  sail,  which  soon  filling  with  a  favorable  wind,  conduct- 
ed us  all  safe  to  the  land. 

We  now  perceived  how  impossible  it  would  have  been 
for  us  to  have  succeeded  in  our  enterprise  without  the  aid 
of  a  sail;  for  the  weight  of  so  many  animals  sunk  the  boat 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  95 

so  low  in  the  water,  that  all  our  exertions  to  row  to  such  a 
distance  would  have  been  ineffectual;  while,  by  means  of  the 
sail,  she  proceeded  completely  to  our  satisfaction,  bearing  in 
her  train  our  company  of  animals;  nor  could  we  help  laugh- 
ing heartily  at  the  singular  appearance  we  made.  Proud  of 
the  success  of  so  extraordinary  a  feat,  we  were  in  high  spir- 
its, and  seated  ourselves  in  the  tubs,  where  we  made  an  ex- 
cellent dinner.  Fritz  amused  himself  with  the  monkey 
while  I  was  occupied  in  thinking  of  those  I  had  left  on  land, 
and  of  whom  I  now  tried  to  take  a  view  through  my  teles- 
cope. My  last  act  on  board  the  vessel  had  been  to  take 
one  look  more  at  those  beloved  beings,  and  I  perceived  my 
wife  and  the  three  boys  all  in  motion,  and  seeming  to  be 
setting  out  on  some  excursion;  but  it  was  in  vain  that  I  en- 
deavoured, by  any  thing  I  saw,  to  conjecture  what  their 
plan  might  be.  I  therefore  seized  the  first  moment  of  quiet 
to  make  another  trial  with  my  glass,  when  a  sudden  excla- 
mation from  Fritz  filled  me  with  alarm. — "  O  Heavens!"  cri- 
ed he,  "  we  are  lost!  a  fish  of  an  enormous  size  is  coming  up 
to  the  boat." — ''And  why  lost?"  said  I,  half  angry,  and 
yet  half  partaking  of  his  fright.  "  Be  ready  with  your  gun, 
and  the  moment  he  is  close  upon  us,  we  will  fire  upon  him." 
He  had  nearly  reached  the  boat,  and  with  the  rapidity  of 
lightning  had  seized  the  foremost  sheep:  at  this  instant  Fritz 
aimed  his  fire  so  skilfully,  that  the  balls  of  the  gun  were 
lodged  in  the  head  of  the  monster,  which  was  an  enormous 
shark.  The  fish  half  turned  himself  round  in  the  water  and 
hurried  off  to  sea,  leaving  us  to  observe  the  lustrous  smooth- 
ness of  his  belly,  and  that  as  he  proceeded  he  stained  the 
water  red,  which  convinced  us  he  had  been  severely  wound- 
ed. I  determined  to  have  the  best  of  our  guns  at  hand  the 
rest  of  the  way,  lest  we  should  be  again  attacked  by  the 
same  fish,  or  another  of  his  species. 


96  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

The  animal  being  now  out  of  sight  and  our  fears  appeased, 
I  resumed  the  rudder;  and  as  the  wind  drove  us  straight 
towards  the  bay,  I  took  down  the  sail,  and  continued  row- 
ing till  we  reached  a  convenient  spot  for  our  cattle  to  land. 
I  had  then  only  to  untie  the  end  of  the  cords  from  the  boat, 
and  they  stepped  contentedly  on  shore.  Our  voyage  thus 
happily  concluded,  we  followed  their  example. 

I  had  already  been  surprised  and  uneasy  at  finding  none 
of  my  family  looking  out  for  us  on  the  shore;  we  could  not, 
however,  set  out  in  search  of  them,  till  we  had  disencum- 
bered our  animals  of  their  swimming  apparatus.  Scarcely 
had  we  entered  upon  this  employment,  when  I  was  relieved 
by  the  joyful  sounds  which  reached  our  ears,  and  filled  our 
hearts  with  rapture.  It  was  my  wife  and  the  youngest  boys 
who  uttered  them,  the  latter  of  whom  were  soon  close  up  to 
us,  and  their  mother  followed  not  many  steps  behind,  each 
and  all  of  them  in  excellent  health,  and  eager  for  our  salu- 
tations. When  the  first  burst  of  happiness  at  meeting  had 
subsided,  we  all  sat  down  on  the  grass,  and  I  began  to  give 
them  an  account  of  our  occupations  in  the  vessel,  of  our 
voyage,  and  of  all  our  different  plans  and  their  success,  in 
the  order  in  which  they  occurred.  My  wife  could  find  no 
words  to  express  her  surprise  and  joy  at  seeing  so  many 
useful  animals  round  us;  and  the  hearty  affection  she  ex- 
pressed for  them,  in  language  the  most  simple  and  touch- 
ing, increased  my  satisfaction  at  the  completion  of  our 
enterprise. 

"Yes,"  said  Fritz,  a  little  consequentially,  "for  this 
once  the  privy-counsellor  has  tried  his  talents  at  invention." 

"  This  indeed  is  very  true,"  replied  I;  "in  all  humility 
have  I  to  confess,  that  to  Fritz  alone  all  praise  belongs,  and 
that  to  his  sagacity  it  is  that  we  are  indebted  for  our  sue- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  97 

cess."  His  mother  could  not  refrain  from  giving  him  a 
hearty  kiss.  "Our  gratitude  is  due  to  both,"  said  she; 
"for  both  have  laboured  to  give  us  the  possession  of  thia. 
troop  of  animals,  an  acquisition  beyond  any  other,  agreea- 
ble and  serviceable  to  us  in  the  situation  in  which  it  has 
pleased  Providence  to  place  us." 

Ernest  and  Jack  now  ran  to  the  boat,  and  began  to  shout 
their  admiration  of  the  mast,  the  sail,  and  the  flag,  desiring 
their  brother  to  explain  to  them  how  all  the  things  they  saw 
had  been  effected  and  what  he  himself  did  of  them.  In  the 
meantime  we  began  to  unpack  our  cargo,  while  Jack  stole 
aside  and  amused  himself  with  the  animals,  took  off  the 
jackets  from  the  sheep  and  goats,  bursting  from  time  to  time 
into  shouts  of  laughter  at  the  ridiculous  figure  of  the  ass, 
who  stood  before  them  adorned  with  his  two  casks  and  his 
swimming  apparatus,  and  braying  loud  enough  to  make  us 
deaf. 

By  and  by  I  perceived,  with  surprise,  that  Jack  had 
round  his  waist  a  belt  of  metal  covered  with  yellow  skin,  in 
which  were  fixed  two  pistols.  "  In  the  name  of  Heaven," 
exclaimed  I,  "where  did  you  procure  this  curious  costume, 
which  gives  you  the  look  of  a  smuggler?" 

"From  my  own  manufactory,"  replied  he;  "and  if  you 
cast  your  eyes  upon  the  dogs,  you  will  see  more  of  my  spe- 
cimens." 

Accordingly  I  looked  at  them,  and  perceived  that  each 
had  on  a  collar  similar  to  the  belt  round  Jack's  waist,  with, 
however,  the  exception  of  the  collars  being  armed  with 
nails,  the  points  of  which  were  outwards,  and  exhibited  a 
formidable  appearance.  "And  is  it  you,  Mr.  Jack,"  cried 
I,  "who  have  invented  and  executed  these  collars  and  your 
belt?" 

I 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  d9 

"  Yes,  father,  they  are  indeed  my  invention,  with  a  little 
of  my  mother's  assistance  when  it  was  necessary  to  use  the 
needle." 

"  But  where  did  you  get  the  leather  and  the  thread  and 
the  needle?" 

"  Fritz's  jackall  furnished  the  first,"  answered  my  wife; 
"and  as  to  the  last,  a  good  mother  of  a  family  is  always 
provided  with  them.  Then  have  I  not  an  enchanted  bag, 
from  which  I  draw  out  such  articles  as  I  stand  in  need  of? 
So,  if  you  have  a  particular  fancy  for  any  thing,  you  have 
only  to  acquaint  me  with  it."  I  tenderly  embraced  her,  to 
express  my  thanks  for  this  effort  to  amuse  by  so  agreeable 
a  raillery,  and  Jack  too  came  in  for  his  share  both  of  the 
caresses  and  our  hearty  commendations.  But  Fritz  was 
both  discontented  and  angry  on  finding  that  Jack  had  taken 
upon  him  to  dispose  of  his  jackall,  and  to  cut  his  beautiful 
skin  into  strips.  He,  however,  concealed  his  ill-humour  as 
well  as  he  could^  but  presently  he  called  out  suddenly, 
holding  his  nose  as  he  spoke,  "What  a  filthy  smell!  Does 
it  perchance  proceed  from  you,  Mr.  Currier?  Is  this  the 
perfume  we  may  expect  from  your  manufactory  ?" — "  It  is 
rather  yours  than  mine,"  replied  Jack  in  a  resentful  tone; 
"  for  it  was  your  jackall  which  you  hung  up  in  the  sun  to 
dry/' — "  And  which  would  have  been  dried  in  a  whole  skin, 
if  it  had  not  pleased  your  sublime  fancy  to  cut  it  to  pieces, 
instead  of  leaving  me  the  power  to  do  what  I  please  with  my 
own  booty,"  answered  his  brother. 

"  Son  Fritz,"  said  I,  in  a  somewhat  angry  tone,  "  this  is 
not  generous  on  your  part.  Of  what  importance  is  it  who 
cut  up  the  skin  of  the  jackall,  if  by  so  doing  it  has  contribu- 
ted to  our  use?  My  dear  children,  we  are  here  in  this  des- 
ert island,  in  just  such  a  situation  as  that  of  our  first  parents 


100  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

when  they  were  driven  out  of  the  garden  of  Eden ;  it  was 
still  in  their  power  to  enjoy  happiness  in  the  fertile  land  in 
which  God  permitted  them  to  live;  and  this  happiness  was 
to  proceed  from  their  obedience,  from  the  work  of  their 
hands,  and  the  sweat  of  their  brow:  a  thousand  and  a  thou- 
sand blessings  were  granted  for  their  use,  but  they  suffered 
the  passions  of  jealousy,  envy,  and  hatred  to  take  root  in 
their  bosoms:  Cain  killed  his  brother  Abel,  and  thus  plunged 
his  unhappy  parents  into  the  deepest  affliction,  so  that  he 
and  his  race  were  cursed  by  God.  This  is  the  horrid  crime 
to  which  the  habit  of  disputing  may  conduct.  Let  us  then 
avoid  such  an  evil,  let  us  share  one  with  the  other  in  every 
benefit  bestowed  upon  us,  and  from  this  moment  may  the 
words  yours  and  mine  be  banished  from  our  happy  circle! 
What  is  discovered  or  procured  by  one  of  you,  should  be 
equally  for  the  service  of  all,  and  belong  to  all,  without 
distinction.  It  is  quite  certain,  Jack,  that  the  belt  round 
your  waist,  not  being  dry,  has  an  offensive  smell;  the  plea- 
sure of  wearing  what  you  had  ingeniously  contrived  makes 
you  willing  to  bear  with  the  inconvenience:  but  we  should 
never  make  our  own  pleasure  the  pain  of  another.  I  there- 
fore desire  that  you  will  take  it  off  and  place  it  in  the  sun 
to  dry,  and  take  care  that  it  does  not  shrink  during  the 
operation;  and  then  you  can  join  your  brothers,  and  assist 
them  to  throw  the  jackall  into  the  sea." 

Fritz's  ill-humour  was  already  over;  but  Jack,  whose 
temper  was  less  docile,  still  retained  the  belt,  and  walked 
about  in  it  with  somewhat  of  an  air  of  resistance.  His  bro- 
thers continued  their  warfare,  pretending  to  avoid  him,  and 
crying  out — "  What  a  smell!  What  a  smell!"  till  at  length 
Jack,  tired  with  the  part  he  had  been  acting,  suddenly  strip- 
ped off  the  belt,  and  joined  the  others  in  dragging  the  dead 
jackall  to  the  sea,  where  he  no  longer  offended  any  one. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  101 

Perceiving  that  no  preparations  were  making  for  supper, 
I  told  Fritz  to  bring  us  the  Westphalia  ham.  The  eyes  of 
all  were  now  fixed  upon  me  with  astonishment,  believing 
that  I  could  only  be  in  jest;  when  Fritz  returned,  display- 
ing with  exultation  a  large  ham,  which  we  had  begun  to  cut 
in  the  morning.  "A  ham!"  cried  one  and  all;  "a  ham! 
and  ready  dressed!  What  a  nice  supper  we  shall  have!" 
said  they,  clapping  their  hands  to  give  a  hearty  welcome  to 
the  bearer  of  so  fine  a  treat. — "  It  comes  quite  in  the  nick 
of  time  too,"  interrupted  I;  "  for,  to  judge  by  appearances, 
a  certain  careful  steward  I  could  name  seems  to  have  inten- 
ded to  send  us  supperless  to  bed,  little  thinking,  I  suppose, 
that  a  long  voyage  by  water  is  apt  to  increase  the  appe- 
tite." 

"  I  will  tell  you  presently,"  replied  my  wife,  "  what  it 
was  that  prevented  me  from  providing  a  supper  for  you  all 
at  an  early  hour:  your  ham,  however,  makes  you  ample 
amends;  and  I  have  something  in  my  hand  with  which  I 
shall  make  a  pretty  side-dish;  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye 
you  shall  see  it  make  its  entrance."  She  now  showed  us 
about  a  dozen  of  turtle's  eggs,  and  then  hurried  away  to 
make  an  omelette  of  some  of  them. 

"  Look,  father,"  said  Ernest,  "  if  they  are  not  the  very 
same  which  Robinson  Crusoe  found  in  his  island!  See,  they 
are  like  white  balls,  covered  with  a  skin  like  wetted  parch- 
ment!     We  found  them  upon  the  sands  along  the  shore." 

"  Your  account  is  perfectly  just,  my  dear  boy,"  said  I: 
"by  what  means  did  you  make  so  useful  a  discovery?" — 
"  Oh,  that  is  part  of  our  history,"  interrupted  my  wife; 
"for  I  also  have  a  history  to  relate,  when  you  will  be  so 
good  as  to  listen  to  it." 

"  Hasten  then,  my  love,  and  get  your  pretty  side-dish 


102  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

ready,  and  we  will  have  the  history  for  the  dessert.  In  the 
meantime  I  will  relieve  the  cow  and  the  ass  from  their 
jackets.  Come  along,  boys,  and  give  me  your  help."  —  I 
got  up,  and  they  all  followed  me  gaily  to  the  shore.  We 
were  not  long  in  effecting  our  purpose  with  the  cow  and  the 
ass,  who  were  animals  of  a  quiet  and  kind  temper;  but 
when  it  was  the^  sow's  turn,  our  success  was  neither  so  easy 
nor  so  certain;  for  no  sooner  had  we  untied  the  rope  than 
she  escaped  from  us,  and  ran  so  fast  that  none  of  us  could 
catch  her.  The  idea  occurred  to  Ernest  of  sending  the  two 
dogs  after  her,  who  caught  at  her  ears,  and  sent  her  back, 
while  we  were -  half  deafened  with  the  hideous  noise  she 
made;  at  last  she  suffered  us  to  take  off  her  cork  jacket. 
We  now  laid  the  accoutrements  across  the  ass's  back,  and 
returned  to  the  kitchen ;  our  slothful  Ernest  highly  delighted 
that  he  was  likely  in  future  to  have  our  loads  carried  by  a 
servant. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  kind  mother  had  prepared  the  om- 
elette, and  spread  a.,  table-cloth  on  the  end  of  the  cask  of 
butter,  upon  which  she  had  placed  some  of  the  plates  and 
silver  spoons  we  had  brought  from  the  ship.  The  ham  was 
in  the  middle,  and  the  omelette  and  the  cheese  opposite  to 
each  other;  and  altogether  made  a  figure  not  to  be  despised 
by  the  inhabitants  of  a  desert  island.  By  and  by  the  two 
dogs,  the  fowls,  the  pigeons,  the  sheep,  and  the  goats,  had 
all  assembled  round  us,  which  gave  us  something  like  the 
air  of  sovereigns  of  the  country.  It  did  not  please  the  geese 
and  ducks  to  add  themselves  to  the  number  of  these  our 
loyal  subjects:  they  deserted  us  for  a  marshy  swamp,  where 
they  found  a  kind  of  little  crabs  in  great  abundance,  and 
which  furnished  a  delicious  food  for  them,  and  relieved  us 
of  the  care  of  providing  for  their  support. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  103 

When  we  had  finished  our  repast,  I  bade  Fritz  present 
our  company  with  a  bcttle  of  Canary  wine,  which  we  had 
brought  from  the  captain's  cabin,  and  I  desired  my  wife  to 
indulge  us  with  the  promised  history. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Second  Journey   of  Discovery,  performed  by  the  Mother  of 

the  Family. 

?•*  You  pretend,"  said  my  wife,  with  a  little  malicious 
smile,  "to  be  curious  about  my  history,  yet  you  have  not 
let  me  speak  a  single  word  in  all  this  time ;  but  the  longer 
a  tonent  is  pent  up,  the  longer  it  flows  when  once  let  loose. 
Now  then  that  you  are  in  the  humour  to  listen,  I  shall  give 
vent  to  a  certain  little  movement  of  vanity  which  is  fluttering 
at  my  heart. — Not,  however,  to  intrude  too  long  upon  your 
patience,  we  will  skip  the  first  day  of  your  absence,  in  the 
course  of  which  nothing  new  took  place,  except  my  anxiety 
on  your  account,  which  confined  me  for  the  most  part  to  the 
spot  from  whence  you  embarked,  and  from  which  I  could 
see  the  vessel.  But  this  morning,  when  I  was  made  happy 
by  the  sight  of  your  signal,  and  had  set  up  mine  in  return, 
I  looked  about,  before  the  boys  were  up,  in  hopes  to  find  a 
shady  place  where  we  might  now  and  then  retire  from  the 
heat  of  the  sun;  but  I  found  not  a  single  tree.  This  made 
me  reflect  a  little  seriously  on  our  situation. — It  will  be  im- 
possible, said  I  to  myself,  to  remain  in  this  place  with  no 
shelter  but  a  miserable  tent,  under  which  the  heat  is  even 


104  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

more  excessive  than  without.  Courage  then!  pursued  Ij 
my  husband  and  my  eldest  son  are  at  this  moment  employed 
for  the  general  good;  why  should  not  I  be  active  and  en- 
terprising also  ?  why  not  undertake,  with  my  youngest  sons, 
to  do  something  that  shall  add  some  one  comfort  to  our 
existence?  I  will  pass  over  with  them  to  the  other  side  of 
the  river,  and  with  my  own  eyes  examine  the  country  re- 
specting which  my  husband  and  Fritz  have  related  such 
wonders.  I  will  try  to  find  out  some  well-shaded  agreea- 
ble spot,  in  which  we  may  all  be  settled.  I  now  cast  an- 
other look  towards  the  vessel;  but  perceiving  no  sign  of  your 
return,  I  determined  to  share  a  slight  dinner  with  the  boys, 
and  then  we  set  out  resolutely,  on  a  journey  of  discovery 
for  a  habitation  better  sheltered  from  the  sun. 

"  In  the  morning,  Jack  had  slipped  to  the  side  of  the  tent 
where  Fritz  had  hung  the  jackall,  and  with  his  knife,  which 
he  sharpened  from  time  to  time  upon  the  rock,  he  cut  some 
long  strips  of  skin  from  the  back  of  the  animal,  and  after- 
wards set  about  cleaning  them.  Ernest  discovered  him  in 
this  uncleanly  occupation;  and  as  he  is,  as  we  all  know,  a 
little  delicate,  and  afraid  to  soil  his  fingers,  he  not  only 
refused  to  give  Jack  any  assistance,  but  thought  fit  to  sneer 
a  little  at  the  currier-like  trade  which  he  had  engaged  in. 
Jack,  who,  as  we  also  know,  has  not  the  most  patient  tem- 
per in  the  world,  raised  his  hand  to  give  him  a  little  cuff. 
Ernest  made  his  escape,  more  alarmed,  I  believe,  by  Jack's 
dirty  hands,  than  by  the  expected  blow;  while  I,  for  my  part, 
ran  to  set  them  right,  and  to  give  a  mother's  reproof  to  both. 
Jack  persisted  that  he  had  a  justification  full  and  undeni- 
able in  the  great  usefulness  of  the  said  dirty  work;  '  for,* 
observed  he,  '  it  is  intended  to  make  some  collars,  which  I 
shall  arm  with  spikes,  and  the  dogs  will  wear  them  for  our 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  105 

defence.'  I  saw  in  an  instant  that  Ernest  had  been  the  ag- 
gressor, and  on  him  fell  the  reproof:  I  represented  how  little 
a  squeamishness  like  his  suited  with  the  difficulties  of  our 
situation,  in  which  one  and  all  were  called  upon  to  assist  in 
any  employment  that  should  promise  to  contribute  to  the 
general  good. 

"Jack  returned  to  his  strips  of  skin,  the  cleaning  of 
which  he  completed  very  cleverly.  When  he  had  finished 
this  part  of  his  undertaking,,  he  looked  out  from  the  chest 
of  nails  those  that  were  longest,  and  which  had  the  largest 
and  flattest  heads;  these  he  stuck  through  the  bits  of  skin 
intended  for  the  collars,  at  small  distances.  He  next  cut  a 
strip  of  sail-cloth  the  same  breadth  as  the  leather,  and,  lay- 
ing it  along  on  the  heads  of  the  nails,  politely  proposed  to 
me  the  agreeable  occupation  of  sewing  them  together,  to 
prevent  the  heads  of  the  nails  from  injuring  the  dogs.  I 
begged  to  be  excused;  but  seeing  the  good-humour  with 
which  he  tried  to  sew  them  for  himself,  and  that,  with  all 
his  good-will,  it  was  too  hard  a  task,  I  rewarded  him  by  do- 
ing it  myself; — few  mothers  refuse  the  sacrifice  of  a  little 
personal  convenience,  to  afford  delight  to  a  virtuous  child. ' 

"  But  now  having  yielded  the  first  time,  I  found  I  had 
made  myself  liable  to  further  claims.  The  next  thing  was  a 
belt  for  himself,  which  he  had  manufactured  of  the  same 
materials,  and  was  impatient  to  see  completed,  it  being  in- 
tended to  contain  his  pistols.  'We  shall  see,*  said  he, 
strutting  about  as  he  spoke,  '  if  the  jackalls  will  dare  to 
attack  us  now.' — '  But,  dear  Jack,  you  do  not  foresee  what 
will  happen; — a  piece  of  skin  not  entirely  dry  is  always 
liable  to  shrink  when  exposed  to  the  heat;  so,  after  all,  you 
will  not  be  able  to  make  use  of  it.'  My  little  workman,  as  I 
said  this,  struck  his  forehead,  and  betrayed  other  marks  of 


106  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

impatience. — 'What  you  say  is  true,'  said  he,  '  and  I  had 
not  well  considered;  but  I  know  of  an  effectual  remedy.' 
He  then  took  a  hammer  and  some  nails,  and  stretched  his 
strips  of  leather  on  a  plank,  which  he  laid  in  the  sun  to  dry 
quickly,  thus  preventing  the  possibility  of  their  shrinking. 
I  applauded  his  invention,  and  promised  him  I  would  not 
fail  to  give  you  a  full  account  of  his  proceedings. 

"  I  next  assembled  them  round  me,  and  informed  them 
of  my  plans  for  an  excursion,  and  you  may  believe  I  heard 
nothing  like  a  dissenting  voice.  They  lost  not  a  moment 
in  preparing  themselves;  they  examined  their  arms,  their 
game-bags,  looked  out  the  best  clasp-knives,  and  cheerfully 
undertook  to  carry  the  provision-bags;  while  I,  for  my 
share,  was  loaded  with  a  large  flask  of  water  and  a  hatchet, 
for  which  I  thought  it  likely  we  might  find  a  use.  I  also 
took  the  light  gun  which  belongs  to  Ernest,  and  gave  him  in 
return  a  carbine,  which  might  be  loaded  with  several  balls 
at  once.  We  took  some  refreshment,  and  then  sallied  forth, 
attended  by  the  two  dogs  for  our  escort.  Turk,  who  had 
already  accompanied  you  in  the  "same  direction,  seemed 
well  aware  that  he  knew  the  way,  and  proceeded  at  the  head 
of  the  party  in  quality  of  a  conductor.  We  arrived  at  the 
place  at  which  you  had  crossed  the  river,  and  succeeded  in 
passing  over,  though  not  without  difficulty. 

"  As  we  advanced,  I  reflected  that  our  safety  depended 
in  some  measure  on  the  two  boys,  because  it  was  they  only 
who  knew  how  to  use  the  guns.  I  now  for  the  firot  time 
began  to  feel  how  fortunate  it  was  that  you  had  accustomed 
them  from  infancy  to  face  danger  of  every  kind:  but  I  am 
now  convinced  that  the  parent  who  adopts  a  hardy  scheme 
of  education  acts  the  wisest  part.  But  now  for  the  passing 
of  the  river. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON.  -     107 

"Ernest  was  first  in  reaching  the  other  side.  The  little 
Francis  entreated  me  to  carry  him  on  my  back,  which  was 
difficult  enough.  At  length  we  found  means  to  manage 
pretty  well,  thanks  to  Jack,  who  relieved  me  of  my  gun  and 
the  hatchet.  But  for  himself,  finding  he  was  scarcely  able 
to  stand  under  his  added  weight,  he  resolved  to  go  straight 
into  the  water  at  once,, rather  than  run  the  risk  of  slipping, 
by  stepping  on  the  loose  wet  pieces  of  stone  so  heavily  lead- 
ed. I  myself  had  great  difficulty  to  keep  myself  steady  with 
the  dear  little  burden  at  my  back,  who  joined  his  hands 
round  my  neck,  and  leaned  with  all  his  weight  upon  my 
shoulders.  After  having  filled  my  flask  with  river  water, 
we  proceeded  on  our  way  till  we  had  reached  to  the  top  of 
the  hill  which  you  described  to  us  as  so  enchanting,  and 
where  I  partook  of  the  pleasure  you  had  experienced.  I 
continued  for  some  time  to  look  around  and  admire  in  si- 
lence; and  for  the  first  time  since  the  event  of  our  dreadful 
accident  at  sea,  I  felt  my  heart  begin  to  open  to  a  sense  of 
enjoyment  and  of  hope. 

"  In  casting  my  eyes  over  the  vast  extent  before  me,  I 
had  observed  a  small  wood  of  the  most  inviting  aspect.  I 
had  so  long  sighed  for  a  little  shade,  that  I  resolved  to  bend 
our  course  towards  it:  for  this,  however,  it  was  necessary 
to  go  a  long  way  through  a  strong  kind  of  -grass  which 
reached  above  the  heads  of  the  little  boys;  an  obstacle  which, 
on  trial,  we  found  too  difficult  to  overcome.  We  therefore 
resolved  to  walk  along  the  river,  and  turn  at  last  upon  the 
wood.  We  found  traces  of  your  footsteps,  and  took  care  to 
follow  them  till  we  had  come  to  a  place  which  seemed  to 
lead  directly  to  it;  but  here  again  we  were  interrupted  by 
the  height  and  thickness  of  the  grass,  which  nothing  but  the 
most  exhausting  endeavours  could  have  enabled  us  to  get 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  100 

through.  Jack  was  now  loitering  a  little  behind,  and  I  fre- 
quently turned  round  to  observe  what  he  could  be  doing:  at 
last  I  saw  him  tearing  off  some  handfuls  of  grass,  and  wiping 
his  clothes  with  it,  and  then  shake  his  pocket-handkerchief, 
which  was  wet,  and  lay  it  on  his  shoulders  to  dry.  I  has- 
tened back  to  inquire  what  had  happened. 

"  '  Oh,  mother,'  said  he,  '  I  believe  all  the  water  of  the 
river  we  have  crossed  has  got  into  my  pockets:  only  see, 
every  thing  I  had  inHhem  is  wet,  pistols,  turfs,  every 
thing.' 

"'Good  Heavens!'  interrupted  I  in  great  alarm,  'had 
you  put  your  pistols  in  your  pocket  ?  They  were  not  load- 
ded,  I  hope?' 

-.■■■  *  I  am  sure  I  do  not  know,  mother;  I  only  put  them 
there  while  my  belt  was  drying,  that  I  might  always  have 
them  about  me. ' 

"'Thoughtless,  yet  fortunate  boy!'  exclaimed  I.  'Do 
you  know  what  an  escape  you  have  had?  If  with  the  sud- 
denness of  your  motions  the  pistols  had  gone  off,  they  would 
infallibly  have  killed  you.  Take  care,  I  entreat  you,  not 
to  commit  such  an  imprudence  in  future.' — '  There  is  noth- 
ing, I  believe,  to  fear,  mother,  for  this  time,' replied  he, 
holding  the  pistol  so  as  to  let  the  water  run  out  of  them. 
And  in  reality  I  perceived,  by  the  condition  they  were  in, 
that  there  was  little  danger  of  their  going  off.  While  we 
were  talking  of  what  had  happened,  our  attention  was  inter- 
rupted by  a  sudden  noise,  and  looking  about,  we  perceived 
a  large  bird  rising  from  the  thickest  part  of  the  grass,  and 
mounting  in  the  air.  Each  of  the  boys  prepared  to  fire,  but 
before  they  could  be  ready,  the  bird  was  out  of  the  reach 
of  shot.  Ernest  was  bitterly  disappointed,  and  instantly 
exchanged  the  gun  for  the  carbine  I  had  given  him,  crying, 


110  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

cWhat  a  pity!  If  I  had  but  had  the  lightest  gun!  if  the 
bird  had  not  got  away  so  fast,  I  would  lay  any  wager  I 
should  have  killed  him.' 

"  '  The  mischief  was,  no  doubt,  that  you  did  not  let  him 
know  before-hand,  that  it  was  your  pleasure  he  should  wait 
till  you  could  be  quite  ready,'  observed  I,  laughing. 

"'But,  mother,  how  could  I  possibly  suppose  that  the 
bird  could  fly  away  in  less  than  the  twinkling  of  an  eye? 
Ah,  if  one  would  but  come  at  this  very  moment!' 

"  '  A  good  sportsman,  Ernest,  always  holds  himself  in 
readiness,  this  being,  as  I  understand,  one  of  his  great  arts; 
for  you  must  know,  that  birds  do  not  send  messages  to 
give  notice  of  their  coming.' 

"  '  I  wish  I  could  but  know,'  said  Jack,  '  what  bird  it  was; 
I  never  saw  any  the  least  like  it.' 

"  'I  am  sure  it  was  an  eagle,'  said  the  little  Francis, 
f  for  I  have  read  in  my  book  of  fables,  that  an  eagle  can 
carry  off  a  sheep;   and  this  bird  was  terribly  large.' 

"  '  O  yes,'  said  Ernest  scoffingly,  '  as  if  all  large  birds 
must  be  eagles!  Why  do  you  not  know  that  there  are  some 
birds  much  larger  even  than  eagles?  The  ostrich,  for  ex- 
ample, which  travellers  sometimes  name  the  Condor  or  the 
Candor. — I  must  confess  it  would  have  afforded  me  the 
highest  pleasure  to  have  examined  this  bird  minutely.' 

"  '  If  you  had  had  time  to  examine  him,  you  would  have 
had  time  to  kill  him,'  said  I;  'but  as  the  opportunity  is 
gone,  let  us  look  for  the  place  in  the  grass  from  which  he 
mounted;  we  may  judge  at  least  of  his  size  by  the  mark  he 
will  have  left  there.'  The  boys  now  all  scampered  away  to 
the  place,  when  suddenly  a  second  bird,  exactly  like  the 
first,  except  that  he  was  a  little  larger,  rushed  out  with  a 
great  noise  and  mounted  above  their  heads. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  Hi 

"The  boys  remained  stupid  with  astonishment,  following 
him  with  their  eyes  and  open  mouths  without  speaking  a 
word,  while  for  my  own  part  I  could  not  help  laughing  heart- 
ily. 'Oh!  such  fine  sportsmen  as  we  have  here!'  cried 
I:  'they  will  never  let  us  be  in  want  of  game,  I  plainly 
perceive.  Jlh!  if  one  would  but  come  at  this  very  moment!' 
Ernest,  always  a  little  disposed  to  vent  uneasiness  by  cry- 
ing, now  began  to  whimper;  while  Jack,  with  a  curious 
mixture  of  tragi-comic  bravery  upon  his  features,  his  eyes 
darting  upon  the  mountain  traveller,  takes  off  his  hat,  makes 
a  profound  bow,  and  roars  out,  as  if  for  the  bird  to  hear: 
'  Have  the  goodness,  Mr.  Traveller,  to  indulge  me  once 
more  with  a  little  visit,  only  for  a  single  minute:  you  can- 
not imagine  what  good  sort  of  people  we  are:  I  entreat 
that  we  may  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  once  again 

'  We  now  minutely  examined  the  place  from  which  the 

birds  had  mounted,  and  found  a  kind  of  large  nest  formed 
of  dry  plants,  of  clumsy  workmanship;  the  nest  was  empty, 
with  the  exception  of  some  broken  shells  of  eggs.  I  inferred 
from  this,  that  their  young  had  lately  been  hatched;  and 
observing  at  this  moment  a  rustling  motion  among  some 
plants-of  shorter  growth,  at  some  distance  from  the  spot  on 
which  we  stood,  I  concluded  that  the  young  covey  were 
scampering  away  in  that  direction;  but  as  the  motion  soon 
ceased,  we  had  no  longer  a  guide  to  conduct  us  to  their 
retreat.  We  next  reached  a  little  wood;  and  here  our  son 
Ernest  had  an  opportunity  of  recognising  many  of  the  ori- 
ginals of  the  engravings  in  his  books  of  natural  history,  and 
of  displaying  his  knowledge,  or  his  ignorance,  to  his  heart's 
content.  A  prodigious  quantity  of  unknown  birds  were 
skipping  and  warbling  on  the  branches  of  the  trees,  with- 
out betraying  the  least  alarm  at  our  vicinity.     The  boys 


112  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

wanted  to  fire  on  them;  but  this  I  absolutely  forbade,  and 
with  the  less  scruple,  as  the  trees  were  of  so  enormous  a 
height  as  to  be  out  of  gun-shot  reach. — No,  my  dear  hus- 
band, you  cannot  possibly  form  an  idea  of  the  trees  we  now 
beheld!  You  must  somehow  have  missed  this  wood;  or  so 
extraordinary  a  sight  could  not  have  escaped  your  observa- 
tion. What  appeared  to  us  at  a  distance  to  be  a  wood,  was 
only  a  group  of  about  fourteen  of  them,  the  trunks  of  which 
seemed  to  be  supported  in  their  upright  position  by  arches 
on  each  side,  these  arches  being  formed  by  the  roots  of 
the  tree. 

"  Jack  climbed  with  considerable  trouble  upon  one  of 
these  arch-formed  roots,  and  with  a  packthread  in  his  hand 
measured  the  actual  circumference  of  the  tree  itself.  He- 
found  that  it  measured  more  than  fifteen  braches  (the 
brache  is  equal  to  twenty-two  inches  and  a  half).  I  made 
thirty-two  steps  in  going  round  one  of  those  giant  produc- 
tions at  the  roots;  and  its  height,  from  the  ground  to  the 
place  where  the  branches  begin  to  shoot,  may  be  about 
thirty-six  braches.  The  twigs  of  the  tree  are  strong  and 
thick;  its  leaves  moderately  large  in  size,  and  bearing  some 
resemblance  to  the  hazel  tree  of  Europe;  but  I  was  una- 
ble to  discover  that  it  bore  any  fruit.  The  soil  immediately 
round  and  under  its  branches  produced  in  great  abundance 
a  short  thick  kind  of  plant,  unmixed  with  any  of  the  thistle 
kind,  and  of  a  perfectly  smooth  surface.  The  large  breadth 
of  shade  which  presented  itself,  seemed  to  invite  us  to  make 
this  spot  the  place  of  our  repose;  and  my  predilection  for  it 
grew  so  strong,  that  I  resolved  to  go  no  further,  but  to  en- 
joy its  delicious  coolness  till  it  should  be  time  to  return.  I 
sat  down  in  this  verdant  elysium  with  my  three  sons  around 
me.     We  took  out  our  provision-bags:  a  charming  stream 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  113 

formed  to  increase  the  coolness  and  beauty  of  the  scene,  flow- 
ed at  our  feet,  and  supplied  us  with  a  fresh  and  salutary  bev- 
erage. Our  dogs  were  not  long  in  reaching  us  ;  they  had 
remained  behind,  sauntering  about  the  skirts  of  the  wood. 
To  my  great  surprise,  they  did  not  ask  for  any  thing  to  eat, 
but  lay  down  quietly,  and  were  soon  asleep  at  our  feet. 
For  my  own  part,  I  felt  that  I  could  never  tire  of  beholding 
and  admiring  this  enchanting  spot  ;  it  occurred  to  me,  that 
if  we  could  but  contrive  a  kind  of  tent  that  could  be  fixed 
in  one  of  the  trees,  we  might  safely  come  and  make  our 
abode  here.  I  had  found  nothing  in  any  other  direction  that 
suited  us  so  well  in  every  respect  ;  and  I  resolved  to  look 
no  further.  When  we  had  shared  our  dinner  among;  us,  and 
well  rested  from  our  fatigue,  we  set  out  on  our  return,  again 
keeping  close  to  the  river,  half  expecting  to  see  along  the 
shore  some  of  the  pieces  or  other  vestiges  of  the  vessel, 
which  the  waves  might  have  washed  there. 

"  But  before  we  left  our  enchanting  retreat,  Jack  entrea- 
ted me  to  stay,  and  finish  sewing  the  linen  strips  to  his 
leather  belt.  The  little  coxcomb  had  so  great  an  ambition 
to  strut  about  and  exhibit  himself  in  this  new  ornament, 
that  he  had  taken  the  trouble  to  carry  the  piece  of  wood,  on 
which  he  had  nailed  his  skin  to  dry,  along  with  him  through 
the  whole  of  our  expedition.  Finding  that  the  skin  was 
really  dry,  I  granted  his  request,  preferring,  since  work  I 
must,  to  do  it  now  when  I  had  the  advantage  of  being  in  the 
shade.  When  I  had  finished,  he  eagerly  fastened  on  the 
belt,  and  placed  his  pistols  in  it  ;  he  set  himself  before  us 
in  a  marching  step,  with  the  knuckles  of  his  hand  turned 
back  upon  his  hip,  leaving  to  Ernest  the  care  of  putting  on 
the  dogs'  collars  ;  which  he  insisted  should  be  done,  for  it 
would  give  them,  he  said,  a  martial  air.     The  self-imagined 

K 


114  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBIN  30W, 

hero  was  all  impatience  for  you  and  Fritz  to  see  him  in  hw 
new  accoutrement  ;  so  that  I  had  enough  to  do  to  walk 
quick  enough  to  keep  sight  of  him  ;  for  in  a  country  where 
no  track  of  the  foot  of  man  is  to  be  found,  we  might  easily 
lose  each  other.  I  became  more  tranquil  respecting  him 
when  we  had  got  once  more  together  on  the  sea  shore  ;.  for, 
as  I  expected,  we  found  there  pieces  of  timber,  poles,  large 
and  small  chests,  and  other  articles  which  I  knew  had  come 
from  the  vesseL  None  of  us,  however,  were  strong  enough 
to  bring  them  away  ;  we  therefore  contented  ourselves  with? 
dragging  all  we  could  reach  to  the  dry  sands,  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  waves  at  high  water.  Our  dogs,  for  their  part, 
were  fully  employed  in  catching  crabs,  which  they  drew  with 
their  paws  to  the  shore  as  the  waves  washed  them  up,  and 
on  which  they  made  an  excellent  repast.  I  now  understood 
that  it  was  this  sort  of  prey  which  had  appeased  their  hun- 
ger before  they  joined  us  at  dinner.  Heaven  be  praised, 
cried  I,  that  our  animals  have  found  means  to  procure  sus- 
tenance at  so  cheap  a  rate!  for  I  really  began  to  think  thaty 
with  their  enormous  appetites,  they  might  some  day  have 
taken  it  into  their  heads  to  eat  their  masters. 

"We  now  suddenly  cast  our  eyes  on  Flora,  whom  we 
perceived  employed  in  turning  over  a  round  substance  she 
had  found  in  the  sands,  some  pieces  of  which  she  swallow- 
ed from  time  to  time.  Ernest  also  perceived  her  motions, 
and  did  us  the  favour,  with  his  usual  composure,  to  pro- 
nounce just  these  words: — 'They  are  turtle's  eggs!' 

"  '  Run,  my  children,'  cried  I,  '  and  get  as  many  of  them 
as  you  can;  they  are  excellent,  and  I  shall  have  the  great- 
est pleasure  in  being  able  to  regale  our  dear  travellers  on 
their  return  with  so  new  and  delicious  a  dish.'  We  found 
it  difficult  to  make  Flora  leave  the  eggs,  to  which  she  had 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  115 

taken  a  great  fancy:  At  length,  however,  we  succeeded  in 
collecting  near  two  dozen  of  them,  which  we  secured  in  our 
provision-bags.  When  we  had  concluded  this  affair,  we  by 
accident  cast  our  eyes  upon  the  sea,  and  to  our  astonish- 
ment perceived  a  sail,  which  seemed  to  be  joyfully  approach- 
ing towards  the  land.  I  knew  not  what  to  imagine;  but 
Ernest  exclaimed  that  it  was  you  and  Fritz;  and  we  soon 
had  the  happiness  of  being  convinced  that  it  was  indeed  our 
well-beloved!  We  ran  eagerly  towards  the  river,  which 
Jack  and  Ernest  recrosscd  as  before,  by  leaping  from  .one 
great  stone  to  another;  while  I  also  resumed  my  burden  of 
■little  Francis  at  my  back,  and  in  this  manner  soon  arrived  at 
the  place  of  your  landing,  when  we  had  nothing  further  to 
do  but  to  throw  ourselves  into  your  arms!" 

"  And  you  think  we  could  set  up  a  tent  in  one  of  those 
giant  trees  at  a  distance  of  sixty-six  feet  from  the  ground! 
And  by  what  means  are  we  to  ascend  this  tree  ?  for  at  pres- 
ent I  have  no  clear  view  of  this  important  part  of  the 
subject," 

I  perceived  a  tear  stealing  into  my  wife's  eye,  that  she 
eould  not  prevail  upon  me  to  think  as  she  wished  of  her 
discovery,  and  that  I  treated  the  subject  of  her  giant  trees 
with  so  little  respect:  I  therefore  endeavoured  to  soothe  and 
relieve  her  somewhat  wounded  sensibility. 

"Do  you  recollect,"  said  she,  "the  large  limetree  in  the 
public  walk  of  the  town  we  lived  in;  and  the  pretty  little 
room  which  had  been  built  among  its  branches,  and  the 
flight  of  stairs  which  led  to  it?  What  should  hinder  us  from 
effecting  such  a  contrivance  in  one  of  my  giant  trees,  which 
afford  even  superior  facilities  in  the  enormous  size  and 
strength  of  their  branches,  and  the  peculiar  manner  of  their 
growth?" 


116  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

"  Well,  well,  we  shall  see  about  it.  In  the  meanwhile,  my 
boys,  let  us  extract  a  little  lesson  in  arithmetic,  from  the 
subject  of  these  marvellous  trees;  for  this,  at  least,  will  be 
deriving  a  real  benefit  from  them.  Tell  me,  learned  Mr. 
Ernest,  how  many  feet  there  are  in  thirty-six  braches?  for 
that,  your  mother  assures  us,  is  the  height  of  the  trees." 

Ernest. — To  answer  this  question,  I  must  know  first  how 
many  feet  or  inches  the  brache  contains. 

Father. — The  brache,  or  half-ell,  contains  one  foot  ten 
inches,  or  twenty-two  inches.  Now  then  make  your  calcu- 
lation. 

Ernest. — I  do  not  find  it  so  easy  as  I  thought.  You  must 
help  me,  Fritz:  you  are  older  than  I  am. 

Fritz. — With  all  my  heart.  First  we  take  thirty-six  bra- 
ches; then  multiply  36  by  22,  the  number  of  inches  each 
brache  contains,  and  you  have  792;  divide  this  by  12, 
the  number  of  inches  in  a  foot,  and  it  will  give  us  66  for  the 
number  of  feet.     Is  that  right,  father  ? 

Father. — Yes,  quite  right.  So,  my  dear  wife,  you  will 
have  every  evening  to  climb  sixty-six  feet  to  get  to  bed, 
which,  as  we  have  no  ladder,  is  not  the  easiest  thing  imag- 
inable. Now  then  let  us  see  how  many  feet  the  tree  is  in 
circumference,  taking  it  round  the  roots.  Your  mother 
found  that  she  walked  round  it  in  thirty-two  steps.  Tell  us 
then,  Ernest,  how  many  feet  do  you  think  these  thirty-two 
steps  would  make? 

Ernest. — You  always  ask  me  the  things  that  I  know 
nothing  at  all  about:  you  should  tell  me,  at  least,  how  many 
feet  there  are  in  a  step. 

Father. — Well,  say  two  feet  and  a  half  to  each  step. 

Ernest.— Twice  32  makes  64;  the  half  of  32  is  16;  which 
added  to  64  makes  80  feet. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  1  17 

Father. — Very  well.  Tell  me  now,  if  you  recollect  the 
proper  term  in  geometry  for  the  circumference  of  a  circle, 
or  say  of  a  tree,  since  we  are  talking  of  trees. 

Ernest. — Oh,  you  may  be  sure  that  I  could  not  forget  that 
it  is  called  the  periphery. 

Father. — Right.  And  what  is  the  term  for  any  line  which 
may  be  drawn  from  one  point  of  the  periphery  to  another, 
passing  through  the  centre?  Now,  Jack,  you  may  show  us 
what  a  great  geometrician  you  intend  to  be. 

Jack. — I  believe  it  is  called  the  diameter. 

Father. — So  far  right.  Next,  can  you  tell  me  what  is  the 
diameter  of  a  periphery  of  eighty  feet,  and  what  distance 
there  is  between  the  extremities  of  the  roots  of  the  giant  tree 
and  its  trunk? 

The  boys  all  began  to  reckon,  and  soon  one  said  one 
number,  one  another,  at  random;  but  Fritz  called  out  louder 
than  the  rest,  that  the  distance  was  twenty-six  feet. 

Father. — You  are  pretty  near.  Tell  me,  did  you  make  a 
calculation,  or  was  it  a  mere  guess? 

Fritz. — No,  father,  not  a  guess;  but  I  will  tell  you:  in 
the  town  in  which  we  lived,  I  have  often  taken  notice  that 
the  hatter,  when  he  was  about  to  bind  the  edge  of  a  hat, 
always  measured  three  times  the  length  of  the  diameter,  and 
a  trifle  over,  for  the  quantity  of  ribbon  he  should  use. 

Father. — So;  height  from  the  ground  to  the  branches,  six- 
ty-six feet;  thickness,  eight  feet  in  diameter,  and  twenty- 
eight  feet  distance  from  the  extremities  of  the  roots  to  the 
trunk;  they  really,  with  propriety,  may  be  called  giant  trees. 

We  now  performed  our  devotions,  and  retired  to  rest, 
grateful  to  find  ourselves  once  more  together,  and  in  health. 
We  soon  closed  our  eyes,  and  enjoyed  tranquil  slumbers  till 
break  of  day. 


118  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

i 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Construction  of  a   Bridge.         i 

When  my  wife  and  I  awaked  the  next  morning,  we  re- 
sumed the  question  of  our  change  of  abode.  I  observed  to 
her,  that  it  was  a  matter  of  difficulty,  and  that  we  might 
have  reason  to  repent  such  a  step.  "  My  own  opinion  is," 
said  I,  <c  that  we  had  better  remain  here,  where  Providence 
seems  to  have  conducted  us;  the  place  is  favourable  to  our 
personal  safety,  and  is  near  the  vessel,  from  which  we  may 
continue  to  enrich  ourselves:  we  are  on  all  sides  protected 
by  the  rocks;  it  is  an  asylum  inaccessible  but  by  sea,  or  by 
the  passage  of  the  river,  which  is  not  easily  accomplished. 
Let  us  then  have  patience  yet  a  little  longer  at  least,  till  we 
have  got  all  that  can  be  removed,  or  that  would  be  useful 
to  us,  from  the  ship." 

My  wife  replied,  that  the  intense  heat  of  the  sands  was 
insupportable;  that  by  remaining,  we  lost  all  hope  of  pro- 
curing fruits  of  any  kind,  and  must  live  on  oysters,  or  on 
such  wild  birds  as  that  we  found  so  unpalatable.  "  As  for 
the  safety  you  boast  of,"  pursued  she,  "the  rocks  did  not 
prevent  our  receiving  a  visit  from  the  jackalls;  nor  is  it  im- 
probable that  tigers  or  other  animals  might  follow  their  ex- 
ample. Lastly,  as  to  the  treasures  we  might  continue  to 
draw  from  the  vessel,  I  renounce  them  with  all  my  heart. 
We  are  already  in  possession  of  provisions  and  other  useful 
things;  and,  to  say  the  truth,  my  heart  is  always  filled  with 
distressing  apprehensions,  when  you  and  Fritz  are  exposed 
V>  the  danger  of  that  prefidious  element  the  sea." 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  119 

"  We  will  then  think  seriously  of  the  matter;  but  let  us 
have  a  well-digested  scheme  of  operation  before  we  leave 
this  spot  for  your  favourite  wood.  First,  we  must  contrive 
a  store-house  among  the  rocks  for  our  provisions  and  other 
things,  and  to  which,  in  case  of  invasion  in  the  wood,  we  can 
retreat  and  defend  ourselves. — This  agreed,  the  next  thing 
is  to  throw  a  bridge  across  the  river,  if  we  are  to  pass  it  with 
all  our  family  and  baggage.'1 

"A  bridge!"  exclaimed  my  wife:  "can  you  possibly 
think  of  such  a  thing?  If  we  stay  while  you  build  a  bridge, 
we  may  consider  ourselves  as  fixed  for  life.  Why  should 
we  not  cross  the  river  as  we  did  before?  The  ass  and  the 
cow  will  carry  all  we  possess  upon  their  backs." 

"  But  do  you  recollect,  that  to  keep  what  they  carry  dry, 
they  must  not  perform  their  journey  as  they  did  from  the 
vessel?  For  this  reason,  then,  if  for  no  other,  we  must 
contrive'  a  bridge.  We  shall  want  also  some  sacks  and 
baskets  to  contain  our  different  matters;  you  may  therefore 
set  about  making  these,  and  I  will  undertake  the  bridge, 
which,  the  more  I  consider,  the  more  I  find  to  be  of  indis- 
pensable necessity;  for  the  stream  will,  no  doubt,  at  times 
increase,  and  the  passage  become  impracticable  in  any  other 
way.  At  this  moment  it  would  be  found  so  for  our  shortest- 
legged  animals,  and  I  am  sure  you  would  not  wish  to  see 
them  drowned." 

"  Well,  then,  a  bridge  let  there  be,"  said  my  wife,  "and 
you  will  leave  our  stock  of  gunpowder  here,  I  hope;  for  I 
am  never  easy  with  it  so  near  us:  a  thunder-storm,  or  some 
thoughtless  action  of  one  of  the  boys,  might  expose  us  to 
serious  dangers." 

"You  are  right,  my  love;  and  I  will  carefully  attend  to 
your  suggestion.     We  will  keep  on  hand  only  a  sufficient 


120  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

quantity  for  daily  use;  I  will  contrive  a  place  in  the  rock 
for  the  rest,  where  it  will  be  safe  from  the  chance  of  fire  or 
dampness.  It  is  an  article  which,  according  to  the  use 
which  is  made  of  it,  may  become,  on  the  one  hand,  a  most 
dangerous  enemy,  and,  on  the  other,  a  most  useful  friend." 

Thus,  then,  we  decided  the  important  question  of  remov- 
ing to  a  new  abode;  after  which  we  fixed  upon  a  plan  of 
labour  for  the  day,  and  then  awaked  the  boys.  Their  delight 
on  hearing  of  our  project  may  easily  be  conceived,  but  they 
expressed  their  fear  that  it  would  be  along  while  before  a 
bridge  could  be  built;  a  single  hour  appearing  an  age  to 
them,  with  such  a  novelty  in  view  as  the  prospect  of  remov- 
ing to  the  wood,  to  live  under  the  giant  trees.  They,  in  the 
fulness  of  their  joy,  entreated  that  the  place  might  be  called 
The  promised  Land. 

We  now  began  to  look  about  for  breakfast;  Fritz  taking 
care  not  to  neglect  his  monkey,  who  sucked  one  of  the  goats 
as  contentedly  as  if  she  had  been  its  mother.  My  wife  un- 
dertook to  milk  another,  and  then  the  cow,  and  afterwards 
gave  some  of  the  milk  to  each  of  the  children;  with  a  part  of 
what  remained  she  made  a  sort  of  soup  with  biscuits,  and  the 
rest  she  put  into  one  of  the  flasks,  to  accompany  us  in  our 
expedition.  During  this  time,  I  was  preparing  the  boat  for 
another  journey  to  the  vessel,  to  bring  away  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  planks  and  timbers  for  the  bridge.  After  break- 
fast we  set  out;  and  now  I  took  with  me  Ernest  as  well  as 
Fritz,  that  we  might  accomplish  our  object  in  a. shorter 
wime. 

We  rowed  stoutly  till  we  reached  the  current,  which  soon 
drew  us  on  beyond  the  bay;  but  scarcely  had  we  passed  a 
a  little  islet,  lying  to  one  side  of  us,  than  we  perceived  a 
prodigious  quantity  of  seagulls  and  other  birds.     I  had  a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  121 

curiosity  to  discover  what  could  be  the  reason  of  such  an 
assemblage  of  these  creatures.  I  steered  for  the  spot;  but, 
finding  that  the  boat  made  but  little  way,  I  hoisted  my  sail. 

To  Ernest  our  expedition  afforded  the  highest  delight. 
He  was  in  ecstasies  at  seeing  the  sail  begin  to  swell,  and 
the  motion  of  the  streamer  in  the  air.  Fritz,  on  his  part,  did 
not  for  a  moment  take  his  eyes  from  the  islet  where  the  birds 
were.  Presently  he  suddenly  exclaimed,  "  I  see  what  it 
is;  the  birds  are  all  pecking,  tooth  and  beak,  at  a  monstrous 
fish,  which  lies  dead  upon  the  soil." 

I  approached  near  enough  to  step  upon  the  land,  and  af- 
ter bringing  the  boat  to  an  anchor  with  a  heavy  stone,  we 
stole  softly  up  to  the  birds.  We  soon  perceived  that  the 
object  which  attracted  them  was  in  reality  an  enormous  fish, 
which  had  been  thrown  there  by  the  sea.  So  eagerly  were 
they  occupied  with  the  feast,  that  not  one  of  them  attempt- 
ed to  fly  off.  We  observed  with  astonishment  the  extreme 
voracity  of  this  plumed  group;  each  bird  was  so  intent 
upon  its  prey,  that  we  might  have  killed  great  numbers  of 
them  with  our  sticks  alone.  Fritz  did  not  cease  to  express 
his  wonder  at  the  monstrous  size  of  the  animal,  and  asked 
me  by  what  means  he  could  have  got  there? 

"I  believe,"  answered  I,  "you  were  yourself  the  means: 
there  is  every  appearance  that  it  is  the  very  shark  you 
wounded  yesterday.  See,  here  are  the  two  balls  which  you 
discharged  at  its  head." 

"Yes,  yes,  it  is  the  very  same,"  said  my  young  hero, 
skipping  about  for  joy:  "I  well  remember  I  had  two  balls 
in  my  gun,  and  here  they  are,  lodged  in  his  hideous  head." 

"  I  grant  it  is  hideous  enough,"  continued  I;  "its  aspect 
even  when  dead  makes  one  shudder,  particularly  when  I 
recollect   how    easy  it  would  have    been    for  him  to  have 

L 


122  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

devoured  us.  See  what  a  huge  mouth  he  has,  and  what  a 
rough  and  prickly  skin!  one  might  almost  use  it  for  a  file; 
and  his  length  must  be  above  twenty  feet.  We  ought  to  be 
thankful  to  Providence,  and  a  little  to  our  Fritz  also,  for 
having  delivered  us  from  such  a  monster!  But  let  us  take 
away  with  us  some  pieces  of  his  skin,  for  I  have  an  idea  that 
it  may  in  some  way  or  other  be  useful  to  us.  But  how  to 
get  at  him  is  the  difficulty." 

Ernest  drew  out  the  iron  ramrod  from  his  gun,  and  by 
striking  with  it  to  right  and  left  among  the  birds,  soon  dis- 
persed them.  Fritz  and  I  then  advanced  and  cut  several 
long  strips  of  the  skin  from  the  head  of  the  shark,  with  which 
we  were  proceeding  to  our  boat,  when  I  observed,  lying  on  the 
ground,  some  planks  and  timbers  which  had  recently  been 
cast  by  the  sea  on  this  little  island.  On  measuring  the  long- 
est, we  perceived  they  would  answer  our  purpose;  and,  with 
the  assistance  of  the  crow  and  a  lever  which  we  had  brought 
with  us,  found  means  to  get  them  into  the  boat,  and  thus  spare 
ourselves  the  trouble  of  proceeding  to  the  vessel.  With 
great  exertion  of  our  strength,  we  contrived  to  bind  the  tim- 
bers together,  with  the  planks  upon  them,  in  the  manner  of  a 
raft,  and  tied  them  to  the  end  of  the  boat;  so  that,  through 
this  adventure,  we  were  ready  to  return  in  four  hours  from  the 
time  of  departure,  and  might  boast  of  having  done  a  good 
day's  work.  I  accordingly  pushed  again  for  the  current, 
which  soon  drove  us  out  to  sea;  then  I  tacked  about,  and 
resumed  the  direct  rout  for  the  bay.  All  this  succeeded 
to  my  utmost  wishes;  I  unfurled  my  sail,  and  a  brisk  wind 
soon  conveyed  us  to  our  landing-place. 

While  we  were  sailing,  Fritz,  at  my  request,  had  nailed 
the  strips  of  skin  we  cut  from  the  shark  to  the  mast  to  dry; 
and  he  now  observed  to  me  that  this  was  wrong,  as  they  had 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  123 

taken  its  round  shape  in  drying,  and  could  not  be  made  flat 
again. 

"That  was  precisely  my  intention,"  replied  I;  "they 
will  be  more  useful  to  us  round  than  flat ;  besides,  you  have 
still  some  left,  which  you  may  dry  flat;  and  then  we  shall 
have  a  fine  provision  of  shagreen,  if  we  can  find  a  good 
method  to  rub  off  the  sharp  points,  and  afterwards  to  polish 
it." 

"I  thought,"  said  Ernest,  "  that  shagreen  was  made  of 
ass's  skin."  "And  you  were  not  mistaken,"  rejoined  I; 
"the  best  shagreen  is  made  in  Turkey,  Persia,  and  Tartary, 
from  skin  taken  from  the  back  of  the  ass  and  the  horse. 
While  the  skin  is  yet  moist,  it  is  stretched  upon  a  kind  of 
hard  fat;  they  then  beat  the  skin,  by  which  means  the  fat  is 
incorporated,  and  gives  the  surface  the  appearance  of  a  kind 
of  file:  but  very  good  shagreen  is  also  made  from  the  skin 
of  sea-fish,  particularly  in  France." 

Ernest  asked  his  brother  if  he  knew  why  the  mouth  of  the 
shark  is  not,  as  in  other  animals,  placed  in  the  middle  of 
the  snout,  but  directly  under.  Fritz  confessed  his  inability 
to  answer  this  question. 

"I  suppose,"  rejoined  Ernest,  "  that  the  mouth  of  the 
shark  is  thus  placed,  with  the  intention  of  preventing  him 
from  depopulating  the  sea  and  the  land.  With  so  excessive 
a  voraciousness  of  appetite  as  he  possesses,  nothing  would 
escape  him  if  he  had  the  power  to  seize  his  prey  without 
turning  his  body  ;  but  as  it  is,  there  is  time  enough  for  a 
smaller  animal  to  make  his  escape." 

"  Well  reasoned,  my  young  philosopher,"  cried  I;  "  and 
though  we  should  not  always  be  able  to  comprehend  the  in- 
tention of  the  Creator  in  the  objects  which  surround  us,  at 
least  the  conjectures  we  are  induced  to  form  respecting  them 
cannot  fail  of  being  a  useful  exercise  *.o  the  mind." 


124  THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

We  were,  once  more  landed  safely  on  our  shore,  but  no 
one  of  our  family  appeared.  We  called  to  them  as  loud  as 
we  could,  which  was  answered  by  the  same  sounds  in  return, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  my  wife  appeared  between  her  two 
little  boys  returning  from  the  river,  a  rising  piece  of  ground 
having  concealed  her  from  our  sight  :  each  carried  a  hand- 
kerchief in  hand,  which  appeared  filled  with  some  new  prize  ; 
and  little  Francis  had  a  small  fishing-net  formed  like  a  bag 
and  strung  upon  a  stick,  which  he  carried  on  his  shoulder. 
No  sooner  did  they  hear  our  voices,  than  they  flew  to  meet 
us,  surprised  at  our  quick  return.  Jack  reached  us  before 
the  rest  ;  and  his  first  act  was  to  open  the  handkerchief  he 
held,  and  pour  out  a  large  number  of  lobsters  at  our  feet: 
their  mother  and  little  Francis  produced  each  as  many  more, 
forming  all  together  a  prodigious  heap,  and  all  alive;  so  that 
we  were  sure  of  excellent  dinners  for  some  days  at  least. 
Some  of  the  animals  tried  to  escape  in  different  directions; 
and  the  boys,  in  following  them,  were  kept  in  full  chase, 
sometimes  pleased  and  somtimes  angry;  sometimes  laugh- 
ing, sometimes  scolding  at  the  bootless  trouble  they  were 
engaged  in;  for  no  sooner  had  they  seized  on  the  deserter, 
than  ten  more  had  followed  his  example. 

"Now,  have  I -not  been  very  lucky,  papa?"  said  little 
Francis;  "  for  you  must  know  it  was  I  who  found  them  out. 
Look,  there  are  more  than  two  hundred  of  them,  and  see 
how  large  they  are,  and  what  fine  claws  they  have!  I  am 
sure  they  will  be  quite  delicious!" 

Father. — Excellent  indeed,  my  little  fellow,  and  particu- 
larly if  it  was  your  industry  that  first  discovered  them. 

Jack. — Yes,  father,  it  was  Francis  who  saw  them  first  ; 
but  it  was  I  who  ran  to'  tell  mamma,  and  it  was  I  who  fetch- 
ed the  net  and  put  it  to  rights,  and  it  was  I  who  went  up  to 
my  knees  in  water  to  catch  them. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  125 

Father. — You  make  a  charming  story  of  it  together,  my 
boys;  but  as  it  is  an  interesting  subject,  you  may  tell  me  as 
many  particulars  as  you  please;  it  is  indeed  an  event  of 
some  importance  for  our  kitchen,  and  I  have  great  pleasure 
in  looking  forward  to  partaking  of  a  dish  of  your  providing. 

Jack. — Well  then,  papa,  as  soon  as  you  were  gone, 
mamma  sat  down  outside  the  tent  and  began  to  work,  while 
Francis  and  I  took  a  little  walk  towards  the  river,  to  find 
out  a  proper  place  for  you  to  begin  the  bridge. 

Father. — Bravo,  Mr.  Architect;  but  joking  apart,  I  am 
much  gratified  to  find  that  careless  head  of  yours  for  once 
employed  upon  a  useful  subject.  Did  you  find  a  proper 
place  for  me  to  begin  the  bridge  ? 

Jack. — Yes,  father,  yes.  But  listen,  and  you  will  know 
all.  When  we  reached  the  river  we  saw  a  large  stone  just 
at  the  edge,  and  little  Francis  kneeling  down,  and  touching 
it,  suddenly  cried  out,  "  Jack,  Jack,  Fritz's  jackall  is  cover- 
ed all  over  with  lobsters!  Run  as  fast  as  you  can."  I  sprang 
to  him  in  an  instant,  and  saw  not  only  the  jackall  covered 
with  them,  but  legions  more  coming  in  with  the  stream.  I 
ran  to  tell  mamma,  who  quickly  got  the  net  you  brought 
from  the  vessel.  Partly  with  this  net,  and  partly  with  our 
hands,  we  caught  those  you  see  in  a  very  few  minutes;  and 
we  should  have  caught  a  much  larger  number  if  we  had  not 
heard  you  call,  for  the  river  is  quite  full  of  them. — "  You 
took  quite  enough  for  once,  my  boy,"  said  I:  "A  little  at 
a  time  is  the  maxim  that  suits  us  best,  and  I  should  even 
advise  your  taking  the  smallest  of  them  back  to  the  river, 
where  they  will  grow  larger;  we  shall  still  have  sufficient 
for  several  magnificent  repasts." — This,  then,  said  I  to 
myself,  is  a  new  source  for  our  support  :  even  here,  in  these 
arid  regions,  we  find  means  to  procure  not  only  the  neces- 


126  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON 

saries  of  life,  but  even  luxuries.  May  we  never  cease  to 
evince  our  gratitude  to  Providence,  by  the  exercise  of  a  more 
than  ordinary  care  and  industry! 

After  giving  in  our  turn  an  account  of  our  voyage,  my 
wife  set  about  dressing  some  of  the  lobsters,  and  in  the  mean- 
time Fritz  and  I  employed  ourselves  in  untying  the  raft  of 
timbers  and  planks,  and  in  moving  them  from  the  boat.  '  I 
then  imitated  the  example  of  the  Laplanders,  in  harnessing 
their  rein-deer  for  drawing  their  sledges.  Instead  of  traces, 
halters,  &c.  I  put  a  piece  of  rope,  with  a  running  knot  at 
the  end,  round  the  neck  of  the  ass,  and  passed  the  other  end 
between  its  legs,  to  which  Iiied  the  piece  of  wood  which  I 
wished  to  be  removed.  The  cow  was  harnessed  in  the  same 
manner,  and  we  were  thus  enabled  to  carry  our  materials, 
piece  by  piece,  to  the  spot  which  architect  Jack  had  chosen 
at  the  river,  as  the  most  eligible  for  our  bridge:  to  say  the 
truth,  I  thought  his  judgment  excellent;  it  was  a  place 
where  the  shore  on  each  side  was  steep,  and  of  equal  height; 
there  was  even  on  our  side  an  old  trunk  of  a  tree  lying  on 
the  ground,  which  I  foresaw  would  have  its  use. 

' '  Now  then,  boys, "  said  I, ' '  the  first  thing  is  to  see  if  our 
timbers  are  long  enough  to  reach  to  the  other  side:  by  my 
eye,  I  should  think  they  are;  but  if  I  had  a  surveyor's  plane, 
we  might  be  quite  sure,  instead  of  working  at  a  venture." 

"But  my  mother  has  some  balls  of  packthread,  with 
which  she  measured  the  height  of  the  giant  tree,"  interrup- 
ted Ernest,  "  and  nothing  would  be  more  easy  than  to  tie  a 
stone  to  the  end  of  one  of  them,  and  throw  it  to  the  other 
side  of  the  river;  then  we  could  draw  it  to  the  very  brink, 
and  thus  obtain  the  exact  length  that  would  be  required  for 
our  timbers." 

"Your  idea  is  excellent,"  cried  I;   "nothing  gives  me 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  127 

more  pleasure  than  to  see  you  exercise  your  invention:  run 
quickly  and  fetch  the  packthread."  He  returned  without 
loss  of  time;  the  stone  was  tied  to  its  end,  and  thrown  across 
as  we  had  planned;  we  drew  it  gently  back  to  the  river 
edge,  marking  the  place  where  the  bridge  was  to  rest:  we 
next  measured  the  string,  and  found  that  the  distance  from 
one  side  to  the  other  was  eighteen  feet.  It  appeared  to  me, 
that  to  give  a  sufficient  solidity  to  the  timbers,  I  must  allow 
three  feet  at  each  end  of  extra  length  for  fixing  them,  ma- 
king therefore  in  all  twenty-four ;  and  I  was  fortunate  enough 
to  find  that  many  of  those  we  had  brought  did  not  fall  short 
of  this  length.  There  now  remained  the  difficulty  of  carrying 
one  end  across  the  stream;  but  we  determined  to  discuss 
this  part  of  the  subject  while  we  ate  our  dinner,  which  had 
been  waiting  for  us  more  than  an  hour. 

We  all  now  proceeded  homewards,  and  entering  the  kitch- 
en, we  found  our  good  steward  had  prepared  for  us  a  large 
dish  of  lobsters;  but  before  tasting  them,  she  insisted  we 
should  look  at  something  she  had  been  employed  about:  she 
produced  two  sacks  intended  for  the  ass,  which  she  had 
seamed  with  packthread;  the  work,  she  assured  us,  had 
with  difficulty  been  accomplished,  since,  for  want  of  a  needle 
large  enough  to  carry  packthread,  she  had  been  obliged  to 
make  a  hole  with  a  nail  for  every  stich;  we  might  therefore 
judge  by  her  perseverance  in  such  a  task,  of  the  ardour  with 
which  she  longed  to  see  her  plan  of  a  removal  executed.  She 
received  on  this  occasion,  as  was  well  her  due,  abundance 
of  compliments  and  thanks  from  her  companions,  and  also 
a  little  good-humored  raillery.  For  this  time  we  hurried 
through  our  meal,  each  being  deeply  interested  in  the  work 
we  were  about  to  undertake,  and  thinking  only  of  the  part 
which  might  be  assigned  him  towards  the  execution  of  the 


128  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

Nonsuch;  for  this,  for  mutual  encouragement,  was  the  name 
we  gave  our  bridge,  even  before  it  was  in  existence. 

Having  consulted  as  to  the  means  of  laying  our  timbers 
across  the  river,  the  first  thing  I  did  was  to  attach  one  of 
them  to  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  of  which  I  have  already  spo- 
ken, by  a  strong  cord,  long  enough  to  turn  freely  round  the 
trunk;  I  then  fastened  a  second  cord  to  the  other  end  of  the 
timber,  and  tying  a  stone  to  its  extremity  flung  it  to  the  op- 
posite bank.  I  next  passed  the  river  as  I  had  done  before, 
furnished  with  a  pulley,  which  I  secured  to  a  tree;  I  passed 
my  second  cord  through  the  pulley,  and  recrossing  the  river 
with  this  cord  in  my  hand,.  I  contrived  to  harness  the  ass  and 
cow  to  the  end  of  the  cord.  I  next  drove  the  animals  from 
the  bank  of  the  river;  they  resisted  at  first,  but  I  made  them 
go  by  force  of  drawing.  I  first  fixed  one  end  of  the  beam 
firm  to  the  trunk  of  the  tree,  and  then  they  drew  along  the 
other  end,  so  as  gradually  to  advance  over  the  river:  pre- 
sently, to  my  great  joy,  I  saw  it  touch  the  other  side,  and 
at  length  become  fixed  and  firm  by  its  own  weight.  In  a 
moment  Fritz  and  Jack  leaped  upon  the  timber,  and,  in 
spite  of  my  paternal  fears,  crossed  the  stream  with  a  joyful 
step  upon  this  narrow  but- effective  bridge. 

The  first  timber  being  thus  laid,  the  difficulty  was  consid- 
erably diminished;  a  second  and  a  third  were  fixed  in  suc- 
cession, and  with  the  greatest  ease.  Fritz  and  I,  standing 
on  opposite  sides  of  the  river,  placed  them  at  such  distances 
from  each  other  as  was  necessary  to  form  a  broad  and  hand- 
some bridge:  what  now  remained  to  be  done  was  to  lay  some 
short  planks  across  them  quite  close  to  each  other,  which  we 
executed  so  expeditiously,  that  our  construction  was  com- 
pleted in  a  much  shorter  time  than  I  should  have  imagined 
possible.     The  reader  should  have  seen  our  young  work- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  129 

men,  to  form  the  least  conception  of  the  delight  they  felt: 
they  jumped,  danced,  played  a  thousand  antics,  and  uttered 
a  thousand  joyful  sounds  upon  their  bridge.  For  my  own 
part,  I  could  hardly  restrain  myself  from  joining  in  these 
demonstrations  of  their  perfect  happiness;  and  my  wife,  who 
had  been  the  mover  of  all  our  operations,  was  as  little  dis- 
posed to  a  silent  calm  enjoyment  of  our  success  as  any  of 
.the  rest:  she  ran  to  one,  and  then  to  another,  embracing 
each  in  turn,  and  was  never  tired  of  passing  and  repassing 
on  our  piece  of  workmanship,  which  was  every  where  safe 
and  even,  and  at  least  ten  feet  in  breadth.  I  had  not  fas- 
tened the  cross  planks  to  each  other,  for  they  appeared  to 
be  close  and  firm  without  it;  and  besides,  I  recollected 
that  in  case  of  danger  from  any  kind  of  invasion,  we  could 
with  the  greater  ease  remove  them,  and  thus  render  the 
passage  of  the  river  more  difficult.  Our  labor  however 
had  occasioned  us  so  much  fatigue,  that  we  found  ourselves 
unable  for  that  day  to  enter  upon  new  exertions;  and  the 
evening  beginning  to  set  in,  we  returned  to  our  home,  where 
we  partook  heartily  of  an  excellent  supper,  and  went  to 
bed. 


I 


130  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Change  of  Abode. 

As  soon  as  we  were  up  and  had  breakfasted,  the  next 
morning,  I  assembled  all  the  members  of  my  family  together, 
to  take  with  them  a  solemn  farewell  of  this  our  first  place  of 
reception  from  the  awful  disaster  of  the  shipwreck.  I  con- 
fess that  for  my  own  part  I  could  not  leave  it  without  regret; 
it  was  a  place  of  greater  safety  than  we  were  likely  again  to 
meet  with ;  it  was  also  nearer  to  the  vessel.  I  thought  it  right 
to  represent  strongly  to  my  sons  the  danger  of  exposing  them- 
selves, as  they  had  done  the  evening  before,  along  the 
river. — "  We  are  now  going,"  continued  I,  "to  inhabit  an 
unknown  spot,  which  is  not  so  well  protected  by  nature  as 
that  we  are  leaving:  we  are  unacquainted  both  with  the  soil 
and  its  inhabitants,  whether  human  creatures  or  beasts; 
much  caution  is  therefore  necessary,  and  take  care  not  to 
remain  separate  from  each  other."  Having  unburdened  my 
mind  of  this  necessary  charge,  we  prepared  for  setting  out. 
I  directed  my  sons  to  assemble  our  whole  flock  of  animals, 
and  to  leave  the  ass  and  the  cow  to  me,  that  I  might  load 
them  with  the  sacks  as  before  concerted;  I  had  filled  these, 
and  made  a  slit  longways  in  the  middle  of  each,  and  to  each 
side  of  the  slits  I  tied  several  long  pieces  of  cord,  which 
crossing  each  other,  and  being  again  brought  round  and 
fastened,  served  to  hold  the  sacks  firmly  on  the  back  of  the 
animal.  We  next  began  to  put  together  all  the  things  we 
should  stand  most  in  need  of  for  the  two  or  three  first  days  in 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON".  131 

our  new  abode:  working  implements,  kitchen  utensils,  the 
captain's  service  of  plate,  and  a  small  provision  of  butter, 
&c.  &c.  I  put  these  articles  into  the  two  ends  of  each  sack, 
taking  care  that  the  sides  should  be  equally  heavy,  and  then 
fastened  them  on.  I  afterwards  added  our  hammocks  to 
complete  the  load,  and  we  were  about  to  begin  to  march, 
when  my  wife  stopped  me. — "  We  must  not,"  said  she, 
"leave  our  fowls  behind,  for  fear  they  should  become  the 
prey  of  the  jackalls.  We  must  contrive  a  place  for  them 
among  the  luggage,  and  also  one  for  our  little  Francis,  who 
cannot  walk  so  far,  and  would  interrupt  our  speed.  There 
is  .  also  my  enchanted  bag,  which  I  recommend  to  your 
particular  care,"  said  she,  smiling,  c'  for  who  can  tell  what 
may  yet  pop  out  of  it  for  your  good  pleasure." 

1  now  placed  the  children  on  the  ass's  back,  fixing  the 
enchanted  bag  in  such  a  way  as  to  support  him,  and  I  tied 
them  together  with  so  many  cords,  that  the  animal  might 
even  have  galloped  without  danger  of  his  falling  off. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  other  boys  had  been  running  after 
the.  cocks  and  hens  and  the  pigeons,  but  had  not  succeeded 
in  catching  one  of  them;  so  they  returned  empty-handed 
and  in  ill-humour. — "  Little  blockheads!"  said  their  mother, 
"  see  how  you  have  heated  yourselves  in  running  after  these 
untractable  creatures!  I  could  have  put  you  in  a  way  to 
catch  them  in  a  moment;  come  with  me  and  see." — She  now 
stepped  into  the  tent,  and  brought  out  two  handfuls  of  peas 
and  oats,  and  by  pronouncing  a  few  words  of  invitation  in 
the  accustomed  tone,  the  birds  flocked  round  her.  She  then 
walked  slowly  before  them,  dropping  the  grain  all  the  way, 
till  they  had  followed  her  into  the  tent.  When  she  saw  them 
all  inside,  and  busily  employed  in  picking  up  the  grain,  she 
shut  the  entrance,  and  caught  one  after  the  other  without 


!32  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

difficulty.  The  boys  looked  at  each  other  half  ashamed, 
though  much  amused  with  the  adventure.  The  fowls  were 
then  tied  by  the  feet  and  wings,  put  into  a  basket  covered 
with  a  net,  and  placed  in  triumph  on  the  top  of  our  luggage. 

We  packed  and  placed  in  the  tent  every  thing  we  were  to 
leave,  and,  for  greater  security,  fastened  down  the  ends  of 
the  sail-cloth  at  the  entrance,  by  driving  stakes  through 
them  into  the  ground.  We  ranged  a  number  of  vessels, 
both  full  and  empty,  round  the  tent,  to  serve  as  a  rampart, 
and  thus  we  confided  to  the  protection  of  heaven  our  re- 
maining treasures.  At  length,  we  set  ourselves  in  motion*, 
each  of  us,  great  and  small,  carried  a  gun  upon  his  shoulder, 
and  a  game  bag  at  his  back.  My  wife  led  the  way  with 
her  eldest  son,  the  cow  and  the  ass  immediately  behind 
them;  the  goat  conducted  by  Jack  came  next;  the  little 
monkey  was  seated  on  the  back  of  his  nurse,  and  made  a 
thousand  grimaces.  After  the  goats,  came  Ernest,  conduct- 
ing the  sheep,  while  I,  in  my  capacity  of  general  superin- 
tendent, followed  behind  and  brought  up  the  rear;  the  dogs 
for  the  most  part  pranced  backwards  and  forwards,  like 
adjutants  to  a  troop  of  soldiers.  Our  march  "was  slow,  and 
there  was  something  solemn  and  patriarchal  in  the  spectacle 
we  exhibited;  I  fancied  we  must  resemble  our  forefathers 
journeying  in  the  deserts,  accompanied  by  their  families  and 
their  possessions. — "  Now  then,  Fritz,"  cried  I,  "you  have 
the  specimen  you  wished  for  of  the  patriarchal  mode  of  life; 
what  do  you  think  of  it?" — ■"  I  like  it  much,  father,"  repli- 
ed he:  "I  never  read  the  Bible,  without  wishing  I  had  lived 
in  those  good  times." 

"And  I  too,"  said  Ernest,  "I  am  quite  delighted  with 
it ;  I  cannot  help  fancying  myself  not  merely  a  patriarch, 
but  a  Tartar,  or  an  Arab,  and  that  we  are  about  to  discover 

* 


134  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

I  know  not  how  many  new  and  extraordinary  things.  Is  it 
not  true,  father,  that  the  Tartars  and  the  Arabs  pass  their 
lives  in  journeying  from  one  place  to  another,  and  carrying 
all  they  have  about  them?" 

*'  It  is  certainly  for  the  most  part  true,"  replied  I,  "  and, 
they  are  denominated  wandering  tribes;  but  they  generally 
perform  their  journeys  attended  by  horses  and  camels,  by 
means  of  which  they  can  proceed  a  little  faster,  than  if,  like 
us,  they  had  only  an  ass  and  a  cow.  For  my  part,  I  should 
not  be  sorry  if  I  were  quite  sure  that  the  pilgrimage  we  are 
now  making  would  be  our  last." — "And  I  too  am  of  your 
way  of  thinking,"  cried  my  wife,  "and  I  hope  that  in  our 
new  abode  we  shall  be  so  well  satisfied  with  the  shade  of 
such  luxuriant  trees,  that  we  shall  not  be  inclined  to  further 
rambles." 

We  had  now  advanced  half  way  across  our  bridge,  when 
the  sow  for  the  first  time  took  the  fancy  of  joining  us.  At 
the  moment  of  our  departure  she  had  shown  herself  so  res- 
tive and  indocile,  that  we  were  compelled  to  leave  her  be- 
hind us;  but  seeing  that  we  had  all  left  the  place,  she  had  set 
out  voluntarily  to  overtake  us;  taking  care,  however,  to  ap- 
prize us,  by  her  continual  grunting,  that  she  disapproved  of 
our  migration. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  river  we  experienced  an  incon- 
venience wholly  unexpected.  The  tempting  aspect  of  the 
grass,  which  grew  here  in  profusion,  drew  off  our  animals, 
who  strayed  from  us  to  feed  upon  it;  so  that,  without  the 
dogs,  we  should  not  have  been  able  to  bring  them  back  to 
the  line  of  our  procession.  The  active  creatures  were  of 
great  use  to  us  on  this  occasion;  and  when  every  thing  was 
restored  to  proper  order,  we  were  able  to  continue  our  jour- 
ney.    For  fear,  however,  of  a  similar  occurrence,  I  directed 


*  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  135 

our  march  to  the  left,  along  the  sea-side,  where  the  produce 
of  the  soil  was  not  of  a  quality  to  attract  them. 

But  scarcely  had  we  advanced  a  few  steps  on  the  sands, 
when  our  two  dogs,  which  had  strayed  behind  among  the 
grass,  set  up  a  sort  of  howl,  as  if  engaged  in  an  encounter 
with  some  formidable  animal.  Fritz  in  an  instant  raised  his 
gun  to  his  cheek,  and  was  ready  to  fire;  Ernest,  always 
somewhat  timid,  drew  back  to  his  mother's  side;  Jack  ran 
bravely  after  Fritz  with  his  gun  upon  his  shoulder;  while  I, 
fearing  the  dogs  might  be  attacked  by  some  dangerous  wild 
beast,  prepared  myself  to  advance  to  their  assistance.  But 
youth  is  always  full  of  ardour;  and  in  spite  of  my  exhorta- 
tions to  proceed  with  caution,  the  boys,  eager  for  the  event, 
made  but  three  jumps  to  the  place  from  which  the  noise 
proceeded.  In  an  instant  Jack  had  turned  to  meet  me, 
clapping  his  hands  and  calling  out  "  Come  quickly,  father, 
come  .quickly,  here  is  a  monstrous  porcupine!" 

I  soon  reached  the  spot,  and  perceived  that  it  was  really 
as  they  said,  bating  a  little  exaggeration.  The  dogs  were 
running  to  and  fro  with  bloody  noses  about  the  animal;  and 
when  they  approached  too  near  him,  he  made  a  frightful 
noise,  and  darted  his  quills  so  suddenly  at  them,  that  a  great 
number  had  penetrated  the  skins  of  the  valiant  creatuies, 
and  remained  sticking  in  them;  and  it  was  no  doubt  the  pain 
they  occasioned  which  made  them  howl  so  violently. 

While  we  were  looking  on,  Jack  determined  on  an  attack, 
which  succeeded  well.  He  took  one  of  the  pistols  which 
he  carried  in  his  belt,  and  aimed  it  so  exactly  at  the  head 
of  the  porcupine,  that  he  fell  dead  the  instant  he  fired,  and 
before  we  had  a  notion  of  what  he  was  about.  This  suc- 
cess raised  Jack  to  the  height  of  joy  and  vanity;  while  Fritz, 
on  the  other  hand,  felt  a  sensation  of  jealousy   almost  to 


136  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

shedding  tears. — "Is  it  right,  Jack,"  said  he,  "that  such  a 
little  boy  as  you  should  venture  to  fire  off  a  pistol  in  this 
manner?  How  easily  might  you  have  wounded  my  father 
or  me,  or  one  of  the  dogs,  by  so  rash  an  action!" — "  Oh 
yes,  to  be  sure,  and  what  do  you  suppose  hindered  me  from 
seeing  that  you  were  all  behind  me  ?  Do  you  think  I  fired 
without  taking,  care  of  that?  Do  you  take  me  for  an  idiot? 
The  porcupine  could  tell  you  about  that,  brother  Fritz,  if  he 
could  but  speak.  My  first  fire — pop — dead  as  a  herring! 
This  is  something  like,  brother  Fritz,  and  you  would  be  glad 
enough  to  have  had  such  a  chance  yourself!" 

Fritz  only  replied  by  a  motion  of  his  head.  He  was  out 
of  humour  because  his  younger  brother  had  deprived  him  of 
the  honour  of  the  day;  and  he  sought  a  subject  of  complaint 
against  him,  as  the  wolf  did  with  the  poor  little  lamb. 
"Come,  come,  boys,"  said  I,  "let  me  hear  no  envious 
speeches  and  no  reproaches;  luck  for  one  to-day,  for  another 
to-morrow;  but  all  for  the  common  good.  Jack  was,  per- 
haps, a  little  imprudent,  but  you  must  allow  that  he  showed 
both  skill  and  courage;  let  us  not  therefore  tarnish  the  glory 
of  his  exploit."  We  now  all  got  round  the  extraordinary 
animal,  on  whom  nature  has  bestowed  a  strong  defence,  by 
arming  his  body  all  over  with  long  spears.  The  boys  were 
at  a  loss  what  means  to  use  for  carrying  away  his  carcass. 
They  thought  of  dragging  it  along  the  ground;  but  as  often 
as  they  attempted  to  take  hold,  there  was  nothing  but 
squalling,  and  running  to  show  the  marks  made  by  his  quills 
on  their  hands. — "  We  must  leave  him  behind,"  said  they; 
"  but  it  is  a  great  pity." 

While  the  boys  were  talking,  my  wife  and  I  had  hastened 
to  relieve-the  dogs,  by  drawing  out  the  quills  and  examining 
their  wounds.     Fritz  had  run  on  before  with  his  gun,  hoping 


THE    SWISS    PAMIX.Y    ROBINSON.  137 

he  should  meet  with  some  animal  of  prey.  What  he  most 
desired  was  to  find  one  or  two  of  those  large  bustards  which 
his  mother  had  described  to  him.  We  followed  him  at  our 
leisure,  taking  care  not  to  expose  our  health  by  unnecessary 
fatigue;  till  at  last,  without  further  accident  or  adventure, 
we  arrived  at  the  place  of  the  giant  trees.  Such,  indeed, 
we  found  them,  and  Our  astonishment  exceeded  all  descrip- 
tion.— "Good  heavens!  what  trees!  what  a  height!  what 
trunks!  I  never  heard  of  any  so  prodigious!"  exclaimed 
one  and  all. — "  Nothing  can  be  more  rational  than  your  ad- 
miration," answered  I,  measuring  them  with  my  eyes  as  I 
spoke.  "  I  must  confess  I  had  not  myself  formed  an  idea 
of  the  reality.  To  you  be  all  the  honour,  my  dear  wife,  for 
the  discovery  of  this  agreeable  abode,  in  which  we  shall  en- 
joy so  many  comforts  and  advantages.  The  great  point  we 
have  to  gain,  is  the  fixing  a  tent  large  enough  to  receive  us 
all,  in  one  of  these  trees,  by  which  means  we  shall  be  per- 
fectly secure  from  the  invasion  of  wild  beasts.  I  defy  even 
one  of  the  bears,  who  are  so  famous  for  mounting  trees,  to 
climb  up  by  a  trunk  so  immense,  and  so  destitute  of  branch- 
es." 

We  began  now  to  release  our  animals  from  their  burdens, 
having  first  thrown  our  own  on  the  grass.  We  next  used 
the  precaution  of  tying  their  two  fore  legs  together  with  a 
cord,  that  they  might  not  go  far  away,  or  lose  themselves. 
We  restored  the  fowls  to  liberty;  and  then  seating  ourselves 
upon  the  grass,  we  held  a  family  council  on  the  subject  of 
our  future  establishment.  I  was  myself  somewhat  uneasy 
on  the  question  of  our  safety  during  the  ensuing  night;  for 
I  was  ignorant  of  the  nature  of  the  extensive  country  I  be- 
held around  me,  and  what  chance  there  might  be  of  our 
being  attacked  by  different  kinds  of  wild  beasts.     I  accord- 

M 


138  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

ingly  observed  to  my  wife,  that  I  would  make  an  endeav- 
our for  us  all  to  sleep  in  the  tree  that  very  night.  While  I 
was  deliberating  with  her  on  the  subject,  Fritz,  who  longed 
to  take  his  revenge  for  the  porcupine  adventure,  had  stolen 
away  to  a  short  distance,  and  we  heard  the.  report  of  a  gun. 
This  would  have  alarmed  me,  if,  at  the  same  moment,  we 
had  not  recognised  Fritz's  voice  crying  out,  "  I  touched  him! 
I  touched  him!"  and  in  a  moment  we  saw  him  running  to- 
wards us,  holding  a  dead  animal  of  uncommon  beauty  by  the 
paws. — "Father,  father,  look,  here  is  a  superb  tiger  cat," 
said  he,  proudly  raising  it  in  the  air,  to  show  it  to  the  best 
advantage. — "Bravo!  bravo!"  cried  I;  "bravo,  Nimrod 
the  undaunted!  Your  exploit  will  call  forth  the  gratitude 
of  our  cocks,  hens,  and  pigeons,  for  you  have  rendered  them 
what  they  cannot  fail  to  think  an  important  service.  If  you 
had  not  killed  this  animal,  he  would  no  doubt  have  demol- 
ished in  one  night  our  whole  stock  of  poultry.  I  charge 
you  look  about  in  eyery  direction,  and  try  to  destroy  as 
many  of  the  species  as  fall  in  your  way,  for  we  cannot  have 
more  dangerous  intruders." 

Ernest. — I  wish,  father,  you  would  be  so  good  as  to  tell 
me  why  God  created  wild  beasts,  since  man  seems  to  be 
appointed  to  destroy  them. 

Father. — This  indeed  is  a  question  I  cannot  answer,  and 
we  must  be  contented  with  taking  care  to  arm  ourselves 
against  them:  neither  can  I  explain  to  you  why  many  other 
things,  which  to  us  appear  to  have  only  injurious  qualities, 
have  been  created.  With  respect  to  beasts  of  prey,  I  am 
inclined  to  believe,  that  one  of  the  ends  of  Providence,  in 
giving  them  existence,  is  their  embellishing  and  varying  the 
works  of  the  creation;  of  maintaining  a  necessary  equilibri- 
um among  creatures  endowed  with  life;  and  lastly,  to  fur- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  139 

nish  man,  who  comes  naked  into  the  world,  with  materials 
for  protecting  himself  from  the  cold,  by  the  use  of  their 
skins,  which  become  the  means  of  exchange  and  commerce 
between  different  nations.  We  may  also  add,  that  the  care 
of  protecting  himself  from  the  attacks  of  ferocious  animals 
invigorates  the  physical  and  moral  powers  of  man,  supports 
his  activity,  and  renders  him  inventive  and  courageous. 
The  ancient  Germans,  for  example,  were  rendered  robust 
and  valiant  warriors,  through  their  habitual  exercises  in  the 
field,  which  enabled  them,  a-t  a  time  of  need,  to  defend  their 
country  and  their  liberty  with  as  little  difficulty  as  they 
would  have  experienced  in  killing  a  wolf  or  a  bear. — But 
let  us  return  to  the  animal  Fritz  has  killed.  Tell  me  all  the 
particulars  of  your  adventure.     How  did  you  kill  him? 

Fritz. — With  my  pistol,  father,  as  Jack  killed  the  porcu- 
pine. 

Father. — Was  he  on  this  tree  just  by  us? 

Fritz. — Yes,  father,  I  had  been  observing  that  something 
moved  among  the  branches.  I  went  softly  as  near  as  I 
could;  and  on  seeing  him  I  knew  him  for  a  tiger  cat.  I 
fired,  when  he  fell  at  my  feet,  wounded  and  furious;  and 
then  J  fired  a  second  time  and  killed  him. 

Father. — You  were  very  fortunate,  for  he  might  easily 
have  devoured  you.  You  should  always  take  care,  in  aim- 
ing at  animals  of  this  kind,  to  be  at  a  greater  distance. 

Fritz. — Why  so,  father  ?  I  might  have  missed  him  if  I 
had  been  further  off.  I,  on  the  contrary,  tried  to  be  as 
near  him  as  possible,  and  fired  close  to  his  ears. 

Father. — This  was  acting  in  the  same  way  as  your  broth- 
er Jack,  whom  you  so  much  derided  for  his  want  of  care, 
and  may  serve  you  as  a  lesson  not  to  blame  in  your  brothers, 
what  you  would  yourself  be  perhaps  obliged  to  do  in  the 


140  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

same  situation;  also  not  to  interrupt  their  joy  with  unkind 
reflections,  but  rather  to  partake  with  them  the  pleasure 
of  their  success. 

Fritz. — Well,  father;  all  I  now  ask  of  Jack  is,  that  he 
will  be  so  good  as  not  to  spoil  the  beautiful  skin  of  this  ani- 
mal as  he  did  that  of  the  jackall.  Only  observe  what 
beautiful  figures  it  is  marked  with,  and  the  fine  effect  of  the 
black  and  yellow  spots;  the  most  richly  manufactured  stuff 
could  not  exceed  it  in  magnificence.  What  is  the  exact 
name  of  the  animal? 

Father. — You  may  for  the  present  give  it  the  name  of  the 
tiger  cat.  I  do  not,  however,  think  that  it  is  the  animal 
which  is  so  denominated  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope;  I 
rather  think  it  is  the  margay,  a  native  of  America,  an  animal 
of  extremely  vicious  dispositions  and  singular  voraciousness; 
he  attacks  all  the  birds  of  the  forest,  and  neither  a  maa,  a 
sheep,  or  goat,  that  should  fall  in  his  way,  could  escape  his 
rapacity.  In  the  name  of  humanity,  therefore,  we  ought  to 
be  thankful  to  you  for  having  destroyed  him. 

Fritz. — All  the  recompense  I  ask,  father,  is,  that  you  will 
let  me  keep  the  skin;  and  I  wish  you  would  tell  me  what 
use  I  can  make  of  it. 

Father. — One  idea  occurs  to  me;  skin  the  animal,  care- 
fully, so  as  not  to  injure  it,  particularly  the  parts  which  cover 
the  fore  legs  and  the  tail.  You  may  then  make  yourself  a 
belt  with  it,  like  your  brother  Jack's.  The  odd  pieces  will 
serve  to  make  some  cases  to  contain  our  utensils  for  the 
table,  such  as  knives,  •  forks,  spoons.  Go  then,  boy,  and 
put  away  its  bloody  head,  and  we  will  see  how  to  set  about 
preparing  the  skin. 

The  boys  left  me  no  moment  of  repose  till  I  had  shown 
them  how  to  take  off  the  skins  of  the  animals  without  tear- 


N  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  141 

ing  them.  In  the  meanwhile  Ernest  looked  about  for  a  flat 
stone  as  a  sort  of  foundation  for  a  fire-place,  and  little  Fran- 
cis collected  some  pieces  of  dry  wood  for  his  mother  to  light 
a  fire.  Ernest  was  not  long  in  finding  what  he  wanted,  and 
then  he  ran  to  join  us  and  give  us  his  assistance,  or  rather 
to  reason,  right  or  Wrong,  on  the  subject  of  skinning  ani- 
mals; and  then  on  that  of  trees,  making  various  comments 
and  inquiries  respecting  the  real  name  of  those  we  intended 
to  inhabit. — "It  is  my  opinion,"  said  he,  "that  they  are, 
really  and  simply,  enormously  large  hazel  trees;  see  if  the 
leaf  is  not  of  exactly  the  same  form." — "But  that  is  no 
proof, "  interrupted  I:  "for  many  trees  bear  leaves  of  the 
same  shape,  but  nevertheless  are  of  different  kinds." 

Ernest. — I  thought,  father,  that  the  mango  tree  only  grew 
on  the  seashore,  and  in  marshy  soils  ? 

Father. — You  were  not  mistaken:  it  is  the  black  mango 
tree  which  loves  the  water.  But  there  is,  besides,  the  red 
mango,  which  bears  its  fruit  in  bunches,  something  like  our 
currant  bushes.  This  kind  of  the  mango  tree  is  found  at  a 
considerable  distance  from  the  sea,  and  its  wood  is  used  for 
dyeing  red.  There  is  a  third  sort,  which  is  called  the 
mountain  mango,  or  yellow  wood,  and  this  is  the  kind  whose 
roots  produce  the  beautiful  arches  you  now  see  around"  us. 

Presently  little  Francis  came  running,  with  his  mouth 
crammed  full  of  something,  and  calling  out,  "Mamma, 
mamma,  I  have  found  a  nice  fruit  to  eat,  and  I  have  brought 
you  home  some  of  it!" 

"Little  glutton!"  replied  his  mother,  quite  alarmed, 
"what  have  you  got  there?  For  Heaven's  sake,  do  not 
swallow,  in  this  imprudent  manner,  the  first  thing  that  falls 
in  your  way;  for  by  this  means  you  may  be  poisoned,  and 
then  you  would  die."     She  made  him  open  his  mouth,  and 


142  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

took  out  with  her  finger  what  he  was  eating  with  so  keen  a 
reli'sh.  With  some  difficulty  she  drew  out  the  remains  of  a 
fig. — "  A  fig!"  exclaimed  I:    "where  did  you  get  this  fig?" 

Francis. — I  got  it  among  the  grass,  papa;  and  there  are 
a  great  many  more.  I  thought  it  must  be  good  to  eat,  for 
the  fowls  and  the  pigeons,  and  even  the  pig,  came  to  the 
place  and  ate  them  in  large  quantities. 

Father. — You  see  then,  my  dear,  said  I  to  my  wife,  that 
our  beautiful  trees  are  fig-trees,  at  least  the  kind  which  are 
thus  named  at  the  Antilles.  I  took  this  occasion  to  give  the 
boys  another  lesson  on  the  necessity  of  being  cautious, 
and  never  to  venture  on  tasting  any -thing  they  met  with, 
till  they  had  seen  it  eaten  by  birds  and  monkeys.  At  the 
word  monkeys,  they  all  ran  to  visit  the  little  orphan,  whom 
they  found  seated  on  the  root  of  a  tree,  and  examining  with 
the  oddest  grimaces  the  half-skinned  tiger  cat,  which  lay 
near  him.  Francis  offered  him  a  fig,  which  he  first  turned 
round  and  round,  then  smelled  at  it,  and  concluded  by  eat- 
ing it  voraciously. — "Bravo,  bravo!  Mr.  Monkey,"  ex- 
claimed the  boys,  clapping  their  hands;  "so  then  these  figs 
are  good  to  eat!  Thank  you,  Mr.  Monkey,  for,  after  your 
wise  decision,  we  shall  make  a  charming  feast  on  them." 

In  the  meanwhile  my  wife  had  been  busy  in  making  a  fire, 
putting  on  the  pot,  and  preparing  for  our  dinner.  The  tiger 
cat  was  bestowed  upon  the  dogs,  who  waited  impatiently  to 
receive  it.  While  our  dinner  was  dressing,  I  employed  my 
time  in  making  some  packing-needles  with  some  of  the  quills 
of  the  porcupine,  which  the  boys  had  contrived  to  draw  from 
his  skin,  and  bring  home.  I  put  the  point  of  a  large  nail 
into  the  fire  till  it  was  red-hot;  then  taking  hold  of  it  with 
some  wet  linen  in  my  hand,  by  way  of  guard,  I  with  great 
ease  perforated  the  thick  end  of  the  quills  with  it.     I  had 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  143 

soon  the  pleasure  of  presenting  my  wife  with  a  large  packet 
of  long,  stout  needles,  which  were  the  more  valuable  in  her 
estimation,  as  she  had  formed  the  intention  of  contriving 
some  better  harness  for  our  animals,  and  had  been  perplexed 
how  to  set  about  them  without  some  larger  needles.  I, 
however,  recommended  to  her  to  be  frugal  in  the  use  of  her 
packthread,  for  which  I  should  soon  have  so  urgent  a  need, 
in  constructing  a  ladder  for  ascending  the  tree  we  intended 
to  inhabit. 

I  had  singled  out  the  highest  fig-tree;  and  while  we  were 
waiting  for  dinner,  I  made  the  boys  try  how  high  they  could 
throw  a  stick  or  stone  into  it.  I  also  tried  myself;  but  the 
lowest  branches  were  so  far  from  the  ground,  that  none  of 
us  could  touch  them.  I  perceived,  therefore,  that  we  should 
want  some  new  inventions  for  fastening  the  ends  of  my  lad- 
der to  them.  I  allowed  a  short  pause  to  my  imagination, 
during  which  I  assisted  Jack  and  Fritz  in  carrying  the  skin 
of  the  tiger  cat  to  a  near  rivulet,  where  we  confined  it  under 
water  with  some  large  stones.  After  this  we  returned  and 
dined  heartily  on  some  slices  of  ham  and  bread  and  cheese, 
under  the  shade  of  our  favourite  trees. 


44  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Construction  of  a  Ladder. 

Our  repast  ended,  I  observed  to  my  wife,  that  we  should 
be  obliged  to  pass  the  night  on  the  ground.  I  desired  her 
to  begin  preparing  the  harness  for  the  animals,  that  they 
might  go  to  the  seashore,  and  fetch  pieces  of  wood,  or  other 
articles  which  might  be  useful  to  us.  I,  in  the  meantime, 
set  about  suspending  our  hammocks  to  some  of  the  arched 
roots  of  the  trees.  I  next  spread  a  piece  of  sail-cloth  large 
enough  to  cover  them,  to  preserve  us  from  the  dew  and  from 
the  insects.  I  then  hastened  with  the  two  eldest  boys  to  the 
seashore,  to  choose  out  such  pieces  of  wood  as  were  most 
proper  for  the  steps  of  my  ladder.  Ernest  wpj  so  lucky  as 
to  discover  some  bamboo  canes  in  a  sort  of  bog.  I  took 
them  out,  and,  with  his  assistance,  corripletely  cleared  them 
from  the  dirt;  and  stripping  off  their  leaves,  I  found,  to  my 
great  joy,  that  they  were  precisely  what  I  wanted.  I  then 
instantly  began  to  cut  them  with  my  hatchet,  in  pieces  of 
four  or  five  feet  long;  the  boys  bound  them  together  in 
fagots,  and  we  prepared  to  return  with  them  to  our  place  of 
abode.  I  next  secured  some  of  the  straight  and  most  slen- 
der of  the  stalks,  to  make  some  arrows  with,  of  which  I 
knew  I  should  stand  in  need.  At  some  distance  from  the 
place  where  we  stood,  I  perceived  a  sort  of  thicket,  in  which 
I  hoped  to  find  some  young  pliant  twigs,  which  I  thought 
might  also  be  useful  to  me;   we  proceeded  to  the  spot;  but 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  145 

apprehending  it  might  be  the  retreat  of  some  dangerous  rep- 
tile, or  animal,  we  held  our  guns  in  readiness.  Flora,  who 
had  accompanied  us,  went  before.  We  had  hardly  reached 
the  thicket  before  she  made  several  jumps,  and  threw  herself 
furiously  into  the  middle  of  the  bushes;  when  a  troop  of 
large-sized  flamingoes  sprang  out,  and  with  a  loud  rustling 
noise  mounted  into  the  air.  Fritz  fired,  when  two  of  the 
birds  fell  among  the  bushes:  one  of  them  was  quite  dead; 
the  other  was  only  slightly  wounded  in  the  wing,  and  find- 
ing that  he  could  not  fly,  he  ran  so  fast  towards  the  water, 
that  we  were  afraid  he  would  escape  us.  Fritz,  in  the  joy 
of  his  heart,  plunged  up  to  his  knees  in  the  water,  to  pick 
up  the  flamingo  he  had  killed,  and  with  great  difficulty  was 
able  to  get  out  again;  while  I,  warned  by  his  example, 
proceeded  more  cautiously  in  my  pursuit  of  the  wounded 
bird.  Flora  came  to  my  assistance,  and  running  on  before, 
caught  hold  of  the  flamingo,  and  held  him  fast  till  I  reached 
the  spot  and  took  him  into  my  protection.  All  this  was 
effected  with  considerable  trouble ;  for  the  bird  made  a  stout 
resistance,  flapping  its  wings  with  violence  for  some  time. 
But  at  last  I  succeeded  in  securing  him. 

Fritz  was  not  long  in  extricating  himself  from  the  swamp; 
he  now  appeared  holding  the  dead  flamingo  by  the  feet:  but 
I  had  more  trouble  in  the  care  of  mine,  as  I  had  a  great  de- 
sire to  preserve  him  alive.  I  had  tied  his  feet  and  his  wings 
with  my  handkerchief;  notwithstanding  which,  he  still  con- 
tinued to  flutter  about  to  a  distressing  degree,  and  tried  to 
make  his  escape.  I  held  the  flamingo  under  my  left  arm, 
and  my  gun  in  my  right  hand.  I  made  the  best  jumps  I  was 
able  to  get  to  the  boys,  but  at  the  risk  of  sinking  every  mo- 
ment in  the  mud,  which  was  extremely  deep,  and  from  which 
it  would  have  been  difficult  to  release  me. 

N 


146  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

The  joy  of  the  boys  was  excessive,  when  they  saw  that 
my  flamingo  was  alive. — "If  we  can  but  cure  his  wound 
and  contrive  to  feed  him,  what  a  happiness  it  will  be!1'  said 
they.  "Do  you  think  he  will  like  to  be  with  the  other  fowls?" 
"I  know,"  answered  I,  "that  he  is  a  bird  that  may  be 
easily  tamed;  but  he  will  not  thank  you  for  such  food  as  we 
give  our  fowls;  he  will  make  his  humble  petition  to  you  for 
some  small  fish,  a  few  worms,  or  insects." 

Ernest. — Our  river  will  furnish  him  with  all  these:  Jack 
and  Francis  can  catch  as  many  as  he  will  want;  and  very 
soon,  with  such  long  legs  as  he  has,  he  may  learn  the  way 
to  the  river  and  find  them  for  himself.  But,  father,  are  all 
flamingoes  like  this,  of  such  a  beautiful  red  colour,  and  the 
wings  so  exquisitely  tinted  with  purple  ?  I  think  I  have 
seen  the  flamingo  in  my  Natural  History,  and  the  colours 
were  not  like  these:  so  perhaps  this  is  not  a  flamingo  at 
last. 

Father. — I  believe  it  is  a  flamingo,  Ernest,  and  that  this 
difference  in  the  plumage  denotes  the  age  of  the  bird:  when 
very  young  they  are  gray;  at  a  more  advanced  age  they  are 
white;  and  it  is  only  when  they  are  full  grown,  that  they  are 
adorned  with  this  beautiful  tinted  plumage.  But  one  of  you 
must  hold  our  live  flamingo,  while  I  repeat  my  visit  to  the 
canes,  for  I  have  not  done  with  them  yet.  I  accordingly 
selected  some  of  the  oldest  of  the  stalks,  and  cut  from  them 
their  hard  pointed  ends,  to  serve  for  the  tips  of  my  arrows, 
for  which  they  are  also  used  by  the  savages  of  the  Antilles. 
Lastly,  I  looked  for  two  of  the  longest  canes,  which  I  cut, 
for  the  purpodfe  of  measuring  the  height  of  our  giant  tree, 
about  which  I  felt  so  deep  an  interest.  When  I  told  my 
sons  the  use  I  intended  to  make  of  the  two  longest  canes, 
they  indulged  themselves  in  a  hearty  laugh  at  me,  and  main 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  147 

tained,  that  though  I  should  lay  ten  such  canes  up  the  trunk 
of  the  tree,  the  last  would  not  reach  even  the  lowest  branch. 
I  requested  they  would  oblige  me  by  having  a  little  pa- 
tience; and  I  reminded  them,  that  it  was  not  long  ago  that 
they  defied  their  mother  to  catch  the  fowls,  because  they 
themselves  had  not  known  how  to  set  about  it.  We  now 
thought  of  returning.  Ernest  took  the  charge  of  the  canes; 
Fritz  carried  the  dead  flamingo,  and  I  resumed  the  care  of 
the  living  one. 

We  had  now  reached  the  spot  where  we  had  left  the  three 
bundles  of  bamboo-canes;  and  as  my  sons  were  sufficiently 
loaded,  I  took  charge  of  them  myself. 

We  at  length  arrived  once  more  at  our  giant  trees,  and 
were  received  with  a  thousand  expressions  of  interest  and 
kindness.  All  were  delighted  at  the  sight  of  our  new  cap- 
tures. My  wife,  with  her  usual  anxiety  about  the  means 
for  subsisting,  asked  where  we  should  get  food  enough  for 
all  the  animals  we  brought  home? — "You  should  consider," 
said  I,  "that  some  of  them  feed  us,  instead  of  being  fed;  and 
the  one  we  have  now  brought  you  need  not  give  much  uneasi- 
ness, if,  as  I  hope,  he  proves  able  to  find  food  for  himself."  I 
now  began  to  examine  his  wound,  and  found  that  only  one 
wing  was  injured  by  the  ball,  but  that  the  other  had  also  been 
slightly  wounded  by  the  dog  laying  hold  of  him.  I  applied 
some  ointment  to  both,  which  seemed  immediately  to  ease 
the  pain.  I  next  tied  him  by  one  of  his  legs,  with  a  long 
string,  to  a  stake  I  had  driven  into  the  ground,  quite  near 
to  the  river,  that  he  might  go  in  and  wash  himself  when  he 
pleased. 

In  the  meantime,  my  little  railers  had  tied  the  two  long- 
est canes  together,  and  were  endeavouring  to  measure  the 
tree  with  them;  but  when  they  found  that  they  reached  no 


148  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

further  than  the  top  of  the  arch  formed  by  the  roots,  they  all 
burst  into  immoderate  fits  of  laughter,  assuring  me,  that  if 
I  wished  to  measure  the  tree,  I  must  think  of  some  other 
means.  I  however  sobered  them  a  little,  by  recalling  to 
Fritz's  memory  some  lessons  in  land-surveying  he  had  re- 
ceived in  Europe,  and  that  the  measure  of  the  highest  moun- 
tains, and  their  distance  from  each  other,  may  be  ascertained 
by  the  application  of  triangles  and  supposed  lines.  I  in- 
stantly proceeded  to  this  kind  of  operation,  fixing  my  canes 
in  the  ground,  and  making  use  of  some  string,  which  Fritz 
guided  according  to  my  directions.  I  found  that  the  height 
of  the  lower  branches  of  our  tree  was  forty  feet:  a  particular 
I  was  obliged  scrupulously  to  ascertain,  before  I  could  deter- 
mine the  length  of  my  ladder.  I  now  set  Fritz  and  Ernest 
to  work,  to  measure  our  stock  of  thick  ropes,  of  which  I  want- 
ed no  less  than  eighty  feet  for  the  two  sides  of  the  ladder: 
the  two  youngest  I  employed  in  collecting  all  the  small 
string  we  had  used  for  measuring,  and  carrying  it  to  their 
mother.  For  my  own  part  I  sat  down  on  the  grass,  and 
began  to  make  some  arrows  with  a  piece  of  the  bamboo,  and 
the  short  sharp  points  of  the  canes  I  had  taken  such  pain3 
to  secure.  As  the  arrows  were  hollow,  I  filled  them  with 
the  moist  sand,  to  give  them  a  little  weight;  and  lastly,  I 
tipped  them  with  a  bit  of  feather  from  the  flamingo,  to  make 
them  fly  straight.  Scarcely  had  I  finished  my  work,  than 
the  boys  came  jumping  round  me,  uttering  a  thousand  de- 
monstrations of  joy: — "A  bow,  a  bow,  and  some  real  ar- 
rows!" cried  they,  addressing  each  other,  and  then  running 
to  me. — "Tell  us  father,"  continued  they,  "what  you  are 
going  to  dp  with  them;  do  let  me  shoot  one; — and  me;  and 
me  too,"  cried  one  and  all  as  fast  as  they  could  speak. 
Father. — "Have  patience,  boys;  I  say,  have  patience. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  149 

Have  you,  my  dear,  any  strong  thread?"  said  I  to  my  wife; 
"  I  want  some  immediately." — "  We  shall  see,"  said  she, 
"what  my  enchanted  bag,  which  has  never  yet  refused  its  aid, 
can  do  for  you."  She  then  threw  open  its  mouth. — "Come," 
said  she,  "  pretty  bag,  give  me  what  I  ask  for;  my  husband 

wants  some  thread,  and  it  must  be  very  strong See  now, 

did  I  not  promise  you  should  have  your  wish? — here  is  a 
large  ball  of  the  very  thread  you  want." 

Ernest. — But  I  do  not  see  much  magic,  however,  mother, 
in  taking  out  of  a  bag  exactly  what  we  had  before  put  into  it. 

Father, — If  we  are  to  discuss  the  matter  seriously,  Ernest, 
I  cannot  but  allow  that  your  observation  is  a  just  one;  but 
in  a  moment  of  dreadful  apprehension,  such  as  we  experi- 
enced on  leaving  the  vessel,  to  think  of  a  variety  of  little 
things  that  might  be  useful  to  one  or  all  of  us,  was  an  act 
that  we  may  truly  call  magical;  only  from  the  best  of  wives 
and  mothers,  could  it  have  proceeded:  it  is,  then,  something 
like  a  truth,  that  your  mother  is  a  good  fairy,  who  constantly 
provides  for  all  our  wants:  but  you  young  giddy  things  think 
little  of  the  benefit  you  thus  enjoy. 

Just  at  this  moment  Fritz  joined  us,  having  finished  meas- 
uring the  string  :  he  brought  me  the  welcome  tidings  that  our 
stock,  in  all,  was  about  five  hundred  fathoms,  which  I  knew 
to  be  more  than  sufficient  for  my  ladder.  I  now  tied  the 
end  of  the  ball  of  strong  thread  to  an  arrow,  and  fixing  it  to 
the  bow,  I  shot  it  off  in  such  a  direction,  as  to  make  the  ar- 
row pass  over  one  of  the  largest  branches  of  the  tree,  and 
fall  again  to  the  ground.  By  this  method  I  lodged  my  thread 
securely,  while  I  had  the  command  of  the  end  and  the  ball 
below.  It  was  now  easy  to  tie  a  piece  of  rope  to  the  end  of 
the  thread,  and  draw  it  upwards,  till  the  knot  should  reach 
the  same  branch.     Having  thus  made  quite  sure  of  being 


150  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  '  ROBINSON. 

able  to  raise  my  ladder,  we  all  set  to  work  with  increased 
zeal  and  confidence.  The  first  thing  I  did  was  to  cut  a 
length  of  about  one  hundred  feet  from  my  parcel  of  ropes, 
an  inch  thick;  this  I  divided  into  two  equal  parts,  which  I 
stretched  along  on  the  ground  in  two  parallel  lines,  at  the 
distance  of  a  foot  from  each  other.  I  then  directed  Fritz  to 
cut  portions  of  sugar-cane,  each  two  feet  in  length.  Er- 
nest handed  them  to  me,  one  after  another;  and  as  I  re- 
ceived them,  I  inserted  them  into  my  cords  at  the  distance 
of  twelve  inches  respectively;  fixing  them  with  knots  in  the 
cord,  while  Jack,  by  my  order,  drove  into  each  a  long  nail 
at  the  two  extremities,  to  hinder  them  from  slipping  out 
again.  Thus,  in  a  very  short  time,  I  had  formed  a  ladder  of 
forty  rounds  in  length,  and,  in  point  of  execution,  firm  and 
compact,  and  which  we  all  beheld  with  a  sort  of  joyful 
astonishment.  I  now  tied  it  with  strong  knots  to  the  end  of 
the  rope  which  hung  from  the  tree,  and  pulled  it  by  the 
other,  till  our  ladder  reached  the  branch,  and  seemed  to  rest 
so  well  upon  it,  that  the  joyous  exclamations  of  the  boys 
and  my  wife  resounded  from  all  sides.  All  the  boys  wished 
to  be  the  first  to  ascend  upon  it;  but  I  decided  that  it  should 
be  Jack,  he  being  the  nimblest  and  of  the  lightest  figure 
among  them. — Accordingly,  I  and  his  brothers  held  the 
ends  of  the  rope  and  of  the  ladder  with  all  our  strength, 
while  our  young  adventurer  tripped  up  the  rounds  with  per- 
fect ease,  and  presently  took  his  post  upon  the  branch;  but 
I  observed  that  he  had  not  strength  enough  to  tie  the  rope 
firmly  to  the  tree.  Fritz  now  interfered,  assuring  me  that  he 
could-  ascend  as  safely  as  his  brother:  but  as  he  was  much 
heavier,  I  was  not  altogether  without  apprehension.  I  fast- 
ened the  end  of  the  ladder  with  forked  stakes  to  the  ground, 
and  then  gave  him  instructions  how  to  step  in  such  a  way  as 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  151 

to  divide  his  weight,  by  occupying  four  rounds  of  the  ladder 
at  the  same  time,  with  his  feet  and  hands.  It  was  not  long 
before  we  saw  him  side  by  side  with  Jack,  forty  feet  above 
our  heads,  and  both  saluting  us  with  cries  of  exultation. 
Fritz  set  to  work  to  fasten  the  ladder,  by  passing  the  rope 
round  and  round  the  branch;  and  this  he  performed  with  so 
much  skill  and  intelligence,  that  I  felt  sufficient  reliance  to 
determine  me  to  ascend  myself,  and  well  conclude  the  busi- 
ness he  had  begun.  But  first  I  tied  a  large  pulley  to  the 
end  of  the  rope,  and  carried  it  with  me.  When  I  was  at  the 
top,  I  fastened  the  pulley  to  a  branch  which  was  within  my 
reach,  that  by  this  means  I  might  be  able  the  next  day  to 
draw  up  the  planks  and  timbers  I  might  want  for  building  my 
aerial  castle.  I  executed  all  this  by  the  light  of  the  moon, 
and  felt  the  satisfaction  of  having  done  a  good  day's  work. 
I  now  gently  descended  my  rope  ladder,  and  joined  my  wife 
and  children. 

Finding  an  inconvenience  in  being  three  together  on  the 
branch,  I  had  directed  the  boys  to  descend  first.  My  aston- 
ishment, therefore,  on  reaching  the  ground,  where  neither 
Fritz  nor  Jack  had  made  their  appearance,  it  is  easier  to 
conceive  than  to  describe.  While  I  was  endeavouring  to 
conjecture  where  they  could  be,  we  suddenly  heard  the 
sound  of  voices  which  seemed  to  come  from  the  clouds,  and 
which  chanted  an  evening  hymn.  I  soon  perceived  the  trick 
our  young  rogues  had  played,  who,  seeing  me  busily  em- 
ployed in  the  tree,  instead  of  descending  as  I  had  desired, 
had  climbed  upwards  from  branch  to  branch,  till  they  had 
reached  the  very  top.  My  heart  was  now  lightened  of  my 
apprehensions  for  their  safety.  I  called  out  to  them  as  loud- 
ly as  I  could  to  take  great  care  in  coming  down.  It  was 
almost  night,  and  the  light  of  the  moon  scarcely  penetrat- 


152  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

ed  the  extreme  thickness  of  the  foliage.  They  presently 
descended  without  any  accident,  when  they  told  us,  that 
scarcely  had  my  voice  reached  to  the  great  height  at  which 
they  were.  I  now  directed  them  to  assemble  all  our  ani- 
mals, and  to  get  what  dry  wood  we  should  want  for  making 
fires,  which  I  looked  to  as  our  defence  against  the  attacks 
of  wild  beasts.  I  explained  to  them  my  reasons  for  this; 
informing  them  that  in  Africa,  a  country  remarkable  for  its 
prodigious  numbers  of  ferocious  animals,  the  natives  secure 
themselves  from  their  nocturnal  visits  by  lighting  large  fires, 
which  all  these  creatures  are  known  to  dread   and  avoid. 

My  wife  now  presented  me  with  the  day's  work  she  had 
performed:  it  was  some  traces,  and  a  breast-leather  each 
for  the  cow  and  the  ass.  I  promised  her,  as  a  reward  for 
her  zeal  and  exertion,  that  we  should  all  be  completely  set- 
tled in  the  tree  the  following  day,  and  we  then  assembled  to 
supper. 

All  our  animals  came  round  us,  one  after  the  other.  My 
wife  threw  some  grain  to  the  fowls,  to  accustom  them  to 
draw  together  in  a  particular  spot;  and  when  they  had  eaten 
it,  we  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  our  pigeons  take  their  flight 
to  the  top  of  the  giant  tree,  and  the  cocks  and  hens  perching 
and  settling  themselves,  and  cackling  all  the  time,  upon  the 
rounds  of  the  ladder.  The  quadrupeds  we  tied  to  the  arched 
roots  of  the  tree,  quite  near  to  our  hammocks,  where  they 
quietly  lay  on  the  grass  to  ruminate  in  tranquillity.  Our 
beautiful  flamingo  was  not  forgotten,  Fritz  having  fed  him 
with  some  crums  of  biscuit  soaked  in  milk,  which  he  ate  very 
heartily;  and  afterwards  putting  his  head  under  his  right 
wing,  and  raising  his  left  foot,  he  abandoned  himself  with 
confidence  to  sleep. 

And  now  the  gaping  of  one.  and  the  outstretched  arms  of 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  153 

another,  gave  us  notice  that  it  was  time  for  our  young  labour- 
ers to  retire  to  rest.  We  performed  our  evening  devotions. 
I  set  fire  to  several  of  the  heaps,  and  then  threw  myself  con- 
tentedly upon  my  hammock.  My  young  ones  were  already 
cased  in  theirs,  and  we  were  soon  greeted  with  their  murmurs 
at  being  obliged  to  lie  so  close  to  each  other  that  they  could 
not  move  their  limbs. — "Ah,  gentlemen,"  cried  I,  "you 
must  try  to  be  contented.  No  sailor  is  ever  better  accom- 
modated than  you  are  now,  and  you  must  not  expect  beds  to 
drop  from  the  clouds  on  your  behalf!"  I  directed  them  how 
to  put  themselves  in  a  more  convenient  posture,  and  to  swing 
their  hammock  gently  to  and  fro.  "And  see,"  added  I,  "if 
sleep  will  not  visit  you  as  soon  in  a  hammock  as  on  a  bed  of 
down."  They  profited  by  my  advice,  and  all,  except  myself, 
were  soon  asleep. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  settling  in  the   Giant   Tree. 

I  had  thought  it  necessary  to  keep  watch  during  this  first- 
night.  Every  leaf  that  stirred  gave  me  the  apprehension 
that  it  was  the  approach  of  a  jackall  or  a  tiger,  who  might 
attack  us.  As  soon  as  one  of  the  heaps  was  consumed,  I 
lighted  another;  and  at  length,  finding  that  no  animal  appear- 
ed, I  by  degrees  became  assured,  and  fell  into  a  sound  sleep, 
The  next  morning  we  took  our  breakfast,  and  fell  to  work. 
My  wife,  having  finished  her  daily  occupation  of  milking 
the  cow    and  preparing  the  breakfast,  set  off  with  Ernest, 


154  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

Jack,  and  Francis,  attended  by  the  ass,  to  the  sea-shore; 
they  had  no  doubt  of  finding  some  more  pieces  of  wood,  and 
they  thought  it  would  be  prudent  to  replenish  our  exhausted 
store.  In  her  absence,  I  ascended  the  tree  with  Fritz,  and 
made  the  necessary  preparations  for  my  undertaking,  for 
which  I  found  it  in  every  respect  convenient ;  for  the  branch- 
es grew  close  to  each  other,  and  in  an  exactly  horizontal  di- 
rection. Such  as  grew  in  a  manner  to  obstruct  my  design, 
I  cut  off  either  with  the  saw  or  hatchet,  leaving  none  but 
what  presented  me  with  a  sort  of  foundation  for  my  work. 
I  left  those  which  spread  themselves  evenly  upon  the  trunk, 
and  had  the  largest  circuit,  as  a  support  for  my  floor.  Above 
these,  at  the  height  of  forty-six  feet,  I  found  others,  upon 
which  to  suspend  our  hammocks;  and  higher  still,  there  was 
a  further  series  of  branches,  destined  to  receive  the  roof  of 
my  tent,  which  for  the  present  was  to  be  formed  of  nothing 
more  than  a  large  surface  of  sail-cloth. 

The  progress  of  these  preparations  was  considerably  slow. 
It  was  necessary  to  raise  certain  beams  to  this  height  of 
forty  feet,  that  were  too  heavy  for  my  wife  and  her  little  as- 
sistants to  lift  from  the  ground.  I  4iad,  however,  the  re- 
source of  my  pulley,  which  served  to  excellent  purpose,  and 
Fritz  and  I  contrived  to  draw  them  up  to  the  elevation  of  the 
tent,  one  by  one.  When  I  had  already  placed  two  beams  upon 
the  branches,  I  hastened  to  fix  my  planks  upon  them;  and  I 
made  my  floor  double,  that  it  might  have  sufficient  solidity 
if  the  beams  should  be  warped  from  their  places.  I  then 
formed  a  wall  of  staves  of  wood  like  a  park-paling,  all 
round,  for  safety.  This  operation,  and  a  third  journey  to 
the  sea-shore  to  collect  the  timber  necessary,  filled  our 
morning  so  completely,  that  not  one  of  us  had  thought  about 
dinner.     For  this  once  we  contented  ourselves  with  a  bit  of 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  155 

ham  and  some  milk,  which  we  ate,  and  returned  to  finish 
our  aerial  palace,  which  began  to  make  an  imposing  ap- 
pearance. We  unhooked  our  hammocks  from  the  pKoject- 
ing  roots,  and  by  means  of  my  pulley,  contrived  to  hoist 
them  up  the  tree.  The  sailcloth  roof  was  supported  by  the 
thick  branches  above;  and  as  it  was  of  great  compass,  and 
hung  down  on  every  side,  the  idea  occurred  to  me  of  nail- 
ing it  to  the  paling  on  two  sides^  thus  getting  not  only  a  roof, 
but  two  walls  also;  the  immense  trunk  of  the  tree  forming  a 
third  side,  while  in  the  fourth  was  the  entrance  to  our  apart- 
ment; and  in  this  I  left  a  large  aperture,  both  as  a  means  of 
seeing  what  passed  without,  and  admitting  a  current  of  air 
to  cool  us  in  this  burning  temperature.  We  also  on  this 
side  enjoyed  an  extensive  view  of  the  vast  ocean,  and  its 
lengthening  shore.  The  hammocks  were  soon  hung  on  the 
branches,  and  every  thing  was  ready  for  our  reception  that 
very  evening.  Well  satisfied  with  the  execution  of  my  plan, 
I  descended  with  Fritz,  who  had  assisted  me  throughout  the 
whole;  and  as  the  day  was  not  far  advanced,  and  I  observ- 
ed we  had  still  some  planks  remaining,  we  set  about  contriv- 
ing a  large  table,  to  be  placed  between  the  roots  of  the  tree, 
and  surrounded  with  benches;  and  this  place,  we  said,  should 
be  called  our  dining-parlour.  For  this  time,  we  performed 
our  task  imperfectly,  for  I  confess  I  was  much  fatigued. 
The  table,  however,  was  such  as  might  be  well  endured,  and 
my  wife  expressed  her  approbation  as  she  looked  on,  busied 
with  preparations  for  our  supper.  In  the  meantime,  the 
three  youngest  boys  collected  all  the  pieces  of  wood  we  had 
thrown  down  from  the  tree,  and  a  quantity  of  small  wood, 
to  dry  in  a  heap,  at  a  small  distance  from  our  fire-place. 
Exhausted  by  the  fatigues  of  the  day,  I  threw  myself  on 
a  bank,  and  my  wife  having  seated  herself  near  me,  I  thank- 


156  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

k 

ed  her  for  the  tender  care  she  was  ever  imposing  on  her- 
self; and  then  I  observed  to  her,  that  the  many  blessings  we 
enjoyed  led  the  thoughts  naturally  to  the  beneficent  giver  of 
them  all;  and  to-morrow  being  a  Sabbath-day,  we  would 
rest  from  work,  in  obedience  to  his  command,  and  other- 
wise keep  it  holy.  We  then  summoned  our  young  family, 
and  prepared  them  for  the  intended  solemnity.  I  called 
their  recollection  to  the  nature  of  the  Sabbath-day;  to  the 
gratitude  due  from  us  to  an  Almighty  being,  who  had  saved 
and  comforted  us  in  the  hour  of  peril,  and  the  duty  of  our 
prayers  and  acknowledgements.  I  informed  them  that, 
after  performing  with  them  the  service  of  the  church,  I 
should  read  to  them  a  paper  I  had  composed  for  the  occa- 
sion, and  to  which  I  had  given  the  name  of  a  parable  of  the 
Great  King.  The  children  expressed  their  approbation  of 
what  I  had  said,  each  in  his  own  way,  and  we  now  assem- 
bled round  our  table  to  supper,  my  wife  holding  in  her  hand" 
an  earthen  pot,  which  we  had  before  observed  upon  the  fire, 
and  the  contents  of  which  we  were  all  curious  to  be  inform- 
ed of.  She  took  off  the  cover,  and  with  a  fork  drew  out  of 
it  the  flamingo  which  Fritz  had  killed.  She  informed  us 
that  she  had  preferred  dressing  it  this  way,  to  roasting,  be- 
cause Ernest  had  assured  her  that  it  was  an  old  bird,  which 
would  prove  hard  and  tough,  and  had  advised  her  to  im- 
prove it  by  stewing.  We  rallied  our  glutton  boy  on  this 
foible  of  his  character,  and  his  brothers  gave  him  the  name 
of  the  cook.  We,  however,  had  soon  reason  to  know  that 
he  had  conferred  upon  us  an  important  obligation;  for  the 
bird  which,  roasted,  we  perhaps  should  not  have  been  able 
to  touch,  now  appeared  excellent,  and  was  eaten  up  to  the 
very  bones_ 
While  we  were  enjoying  our  repast,  the  live  flamingo  stalk- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  157 

ed  up  to  the  place  where  we  were  sitting,  in  the  midst  of  our 
flock  of  fowls,  to  receive  his  part  of  the  repast.  He  had 
now  become  so  tame  that  we  had  released  him  from  the  stake. 
He  took  his  walks  gravely  from  place  to  place,  and  looked 
perfectly  contented  with  his  company.  His  fine  plumage 
was  a  most  pleasing  sight;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
sportive  tricks  and  the  grimaces  of  our  little  monkey  af- 
forded the  most  agreeable  spectacle  imaginable.  The  little 
animal  had  become  quite  familiar  with  us;  jumped  from  the 
shoulder  of  one  to  that  of  another;  always  caught  adroitly 
the  meat  we  threw  him,  and  ate  it  in  so  pleasant  a  way.  as  to 
make  us  laugh  heartily. 

The  boys  now,  by  my  direction,  lighted  one  of  the  heaps 
of  wood.  We  tied  long  ropes  loosely  round  the  necks  of 
our  dogs,  purposing  to  mount  to  our  tent  with  the  ends  in 
my  hand,  that  I  might  be  able  to  let  them  loose  upon  the 
enemy  at  the  first  barking  I  should  hear.  Every  one  was 
eager  to  retire  to  rest,  and  the  signal  for  ascending  the  lad- 
der was  given.  The  three  eldest  boys  were  up  in  an  instant; 
then  came  their  mother's  turn,  who  proceeded  slowly  and 
cautiously,  and  arrived  in  perfect  safety.  My  own  ascen- 
sion was  last,  and  the  most  difficult;  for  I  carried  little 
Francis  on  my  back,  and  the  end  of  the  ladder  had  been 
loosened  at  the  bottom,  that  I  might  be  able  to  draw  it  up 
in  the  tent  during  the  night:  every  step,  therefore,  was  made 
with  the  greatest  difficulty,  in  consequence  of  its  swinging 
motion.  At  last,  however,  I  got  to  the  top,  and,  to  the  ad- 
miration of  the  boys,  drew  the  ladder  after  me.  It  appear- 
ed to  them  that  we  were  in  one  of  the  strong  castles  of  the 
ancient  cavaliers,  in  which,  when  the  draw-bridge  is  raised, 
the  inhabitants  are  secured  from  every  attack  of  the  enemy. 
Notwithstanding  this  apparent  safety,  I  kept  our  guns  in 


158  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

readiness  for  whatever  event  might  require  their  use.  We 
now  abandoned  ourselves  to  repose;  our  hearts  experienced 
a  full  tranquillity;  and  the  fatigue  we  had  all  undergone 
induced  so  sound  a  sleep,  that  daylight  shone  full  in  the 
front  of  our  habitation  before  our  eyes  had  opened. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Sabbath  and  the  Parable. 

On  awaking  in  the  morning,  we  were  all  sensible  of  an 
unusual  refreshment,  and  a  new  activity  of  mind.  "Well, 
young  ones,"  cried  I,  jocosely,  "you  have  learned,  I  see, 
how  to  sleep  in  a  hammock:  I  heard  not  a  single  complaint 
all  the  night;  no  disputing  about  room  from  any  one  of  you; 
all  was  still  and  tranquil." — "Ah,"  answered  they,  stretch- 
ing and  yawning  as  they  spoke,  "we  were  so  heartily 
fatigued  yesterday,  that  it  is  no  wonder  we  slept  soundly." 

Father. — Here,  then,  my  children,  is  another  advantage 
derived  from  labour;  that  of  procuring  a  sweet  and  peaceful 
sleep. 

My  wife  could  not  help  wishing  we  had  some  place  like 
a  church  for  the  worship  of  the  Sabbath,  till  I  said  to  her, 
"There  is  no  place  in  the  world  that  may  not  serve  for  a 
church,  because  we  may  entertain  pious  sentiments  every- 
where; and  this  majestic  arch  of  Heaven,  the  immediate 
work  of  the  Almighty,  ought  more  effectually  to  raise  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  159 

soul  and  touch  the  heart,  than  an  edifice  of  stone  made  by 
the  hand  of  man!" 

\^e  descended  the  ladder,  and  breakfasted  on  warm  milk; 
;we  served  the  animals  also  with  their  meal,  and  then  we  all 
sat  down  on  the  tender  grass;  the  boys  full  of  impatient  cu- 
riosity; their  mother  absorbed  in  silent  reflection,  her  hands 
joined,  and  her  eyes  sometimes  turned  towards  the  sky; 
while  I  was  penetrated  with  the  most  lively  desire  to  im- 
press upon  the  young  minds  of  my  children,  a  subject  I 
considered  of  the  highest  importance  for  their  well-being, 
both  in  this  world  and  in  that  which  is  to  come. 

All  now  standing  up,  I  repeated  aloud  the  church  service, 
which  I  knew  by  heart,  and  we  sang  some  verses  from  the 
hundred-and-nineteenth  psalm,  which  the  boys  had  before 
learned;   after  which  we  sat  down,  and  I  began  as  follows: 

"My  dear  children,  there  was  once  a  Great  King,  whose 
kingdom  was  called  The  Country  of  Light  and  Reality, 
because  the  purest  and  softest  light  of  the  sun  reigned  there 
Continually,  which  caused  the  inhabitants  to  be  in  a  perpet- 
ual state  of  activity.  On  the  furthest  borders  of  this  king- 
dom, northward,  there  was  another  country,  which  also  be- 
longed to  the  Great  King,  and  the  immense  extent  of  which 
was  unknown  to  all  but  himself.  From  time  immemorial,  a 
plan  the  most  exact  of  this  country  had  been  preserved  in 
the  royal  archives.  This  second  kingdom  was  called  The 
kingdom  of  Obscurity  or  of  Night,  because  every  thing  in 
it  was  gloomy  and  inactive.  ' 

"In  the  most  fertile  and  agreeable  part  of  his  empire  of 
Reality,  this  Great  King  had  a  residence  called  the  Heaven- 
ly City,  in  which  he  lived  and  kept  his  court,  which  was 
the  most  brilliant  that  the  imagination  can  form  an  idea  of. 
Millions  of  guards,  and  servants  high  in  dignity,  remained 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON.  161 

for  ever  round  him,  and  a  still  larger  number  held  them- 
selves in  readiness  to  receive  his  commands.  The  first  of 
these  were  clothed  in  robes  of  cloth  that  was  lighter  than 
silk,  and  white  as  snow;  for  white,  the  image  of  purity,  was 
the  favourite  colour  of  the  Great  King.  Others  of  his  'at- 
tendants carried  flaming  swords  in  their  hands,  and  their 
garments  displayed  the  most  brilliant  colours  of  the  rainbow; 
each  of  these  stood  in  waiting  to  execute  the  will  of  the 
King,  with  the  rapidity  of  lightning,  on  receiving  from  him 
the  slightest  sign.  All  were  happy  to  be  admitted  into  his 
presence;  their  faces  shone  with  the  mildest  joy:  there  was 
but  one  heart  and  one  soul  among  them;  the  sentiment  of 
paternal  concord  so  united  these  beings,  that  no  envy  or 
jealousy  ever  arose  among  them.  The  common  centre  of 
all  their  thoughts,  and  all  their  sentiments,  v/as  devotion  to 
their  sovereign:  it  would  have  been  impossible  either  to 
see  or  converse  with  them,  without  desiring  to  obtain  their 
friendship,  and  to  partake  their  lot.  Among  the  rest  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Heavenly  City,  there  were  some  less  close 
in  their  attendance  upon  the  Great  King;  but  they  were  all 
virtuous,  all  happy,  all  had  been  enriched  by  the  benefi- 
cence of  the  monarch,  and,  what  is  of  still  higher  price,  had 
received  constant  marks  of  his  paternal  care;  for  his  sub- 
jects were  all  equal  in  his  eyes,  and  he  loved  them  and 
treated  them  as  if  they  had  been  his  children. 

"  The  Great  King  had,  besides  the  two  kingdoms  I  have 
been  describing,  an  uninhabited  island  of  considerable  ex- 
tent: it  was  his  wish  to  people  and  cultivate  this  island,  for 
all  within  it  was  a  kind  of  chaos:  he  destined  it  to  be  for 
some  years  the  abode  of  such  future  citizens  as  he  intended 
to  receive  finally  into  his  residence,  to  which  only  such  of 
his  subjects  were  admitted,  as  had  rendered  themselves  wor- 

O 


162  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

thy  by  their  conduct.  This  island  was  called  Earthly  Abode, 
he  who  should  have  passed  some  time  in  it,  and  by  his  vir- 
tues, his  application  to  labour,  and  the  cultivation  of  the 
land,  should  have  rendered  himself  worthy  of  reward,  was 
afterwards  to  be  received  into  the  Heavenly  City,  and  made 
one  of  its  happy  inhabitants. 

"  To  effect  this  end,  the  Great  King  caused  a  fleet  to 
be  equipped,  which  was  to  transport  the  new  colonists  to  this 
island.  These  he  chose  from  the  kingdom  of  Night,  and  for 
his  first  gift  bestowed  upon  them  the  enjoyment  of  light,  and 
the  view  of  the  lovely  face  of  nature,  of  which  they  had 
been  deprived  in  their  gloomy  and  unknown  abode;  It, will 
easily  be  imagined  that  they  arrived  joyful  and  happy,  at 
least  they  became  so  when  they  had  been  for  a  short  time 
accustomed  to  the  multitude  of  new  objects  which  struck 
their  feeble  sight.  The  island  was  rich  and  fertile  when 
cultivated.  The  beneficent  King  provided  each  individual 
who  "was  disembarked  upon  it,  with  all  the  things  he  could 
want  rn  the  time  he  had  fixed  for  their  stay  in  it,  and  all  the 
means  for  obtaining  the  certainty  of  being  admitted  as  citi- 
zens of  his  magnificent  abodes  when  they  should  leave  the 
Earthly  Island.  All  that  was  required  to  entitle  them  to 
this  benefit  was,  that  they  should  occupy  themselves  unceas- 
ingly in  useful  labour,  and  strictly  obey  the  commands  of  the 
Great  King,  which  he  made  known  to  them.  He  sent  to 
them  his  only  son,  who  addressed  them  from  his  father  in 
the  following  terms: 

"'"  My  dear  children,  I  have  called  you  from  the  kingdom 
of  Night  and  Insensibility,  to  render  you  happy  by  the  gifts 
of  life,  of  sentiment,  and  of  activity.  But  your  happiness 
for  the  most  part  will  depend  upon  yourselves.  You  will  be 
happy  if  you  wish  to  be  so.     If  such  is  your  sincere  desire, 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  163 

you  must  never  forget  that  I  am  your  good  King,  your  ten- 
der father;  and  you  must  faithfully  fulfil  my  will  in  the 
cultivation  of  the  country  I  have  confided  to  your  care. 
Each  of  you  shall  receive,  on  his  arriving  at  the  island,  the 
portion  of  land  which  is  intended  for  him;  and  my  further 
commands  respecting  your  conduct,  will  be  soon  communi- 
cated to  you.  I  shall  send  you  wise  and  learned  men,  who 
lain  to  you  my  commands;  and  that  you  may  of  your- 
selves seek  after  the  light  necessary  for  your  welfare,  and 
remember  my  laws  at  every  instant  of  your  lives,  it  is  my 
jivill  that  each  father  of  a  family  shall  keep  an  exact  copy  of 
wjem^nrhis  house,  and  read  them  daily  to  all  the  persons 
who  belong  to  him.  Further,  each  first  day  of  the  week  I 
require  to  be  devoted  to  my  service.  In  each  colony,  all 
the  people  shall  assemble  together  as  brothers  in  one  place, 
where  shall  be  read  and  explained  to  them  the  laws  contain- 
eid  in  my  archives.  The  rest  of  this  day  shall  be  employed 
in  making  serious  reflections  on  the  duties  and  destination  of 
the  colonists,  and  on  the  best  means  to  fulfil  the  same :  thus  it 
/shall  be  possible  to  all  to  receive  instruction  concerning 
the  best  manner  and  most  effectual  means  of  improving  the 
land  which  has  been  confided  to  your  care:  thus  you  will 
each  day  learn  to  manure,  to  sow,  to  plant,  to  water,  and 
cleanse  the  land  from  tares,  and  from  all  evil  weeds  that 
may  choke  the  good  seed.  On  this  same  day,  each  of  you 
may  present  his  supplications,  may  tell  me  what  he  stands 
in  need  of,  and  what  he  desires  to  have,  to  forward  the 
perfection  of  his  labour:  all  these  requests  will  appear  before 
me,  and  I  shall  answer,  by  granting  such  as  I  shall  think 
reasonable,  and  tending  to  a  salutary  end.  If  your  heart 
tells  you  that  the  various  benefits  you  enjoy,  deserve  your 
gratitude,  and  if  you  will  testify  it  by  doubling  your  activity, 


164  THE    SWISS    FAMIL1    ROBINSON. 

and  by  consecrating  to  me  the  day  I  have  chosen  for  myself, 
I  wil]  take  care  that  this  day  of  rest,  instead  of  being  an  in- 
jury to  you,  shall  become  a  benefit,  through  the  salutary 
repose  of  your  body,  and  that  of  the  animals  given  you  to 
assist  your  labours,  and  who,  as  well  as  yourself,  should  en- 
joy repose  on  that  day,  to  recruit  their  strength.  Even  the 
wild  animals  of  the  field,  and  of  the  forests,  ought  on  that 
day  to  be  protected  from  the  pursuit  of  the  hunter. 

'-  •  He  who,  in  his  Earthly  Abode,  shall  most  strictiy 
have  observed  my  will,  who  shall  have  best  fulfilled  the  du- 
ties of  a  brother  towards  his  fellow  inhabitants,  who  shall 
have  preserved  his  land  in  the  best  order,  and  shall  show 
the  largest  produce  from  it,  shall  be  recompensed  for  his 
deeds,  and  shall  become  an  inhabitant  of  my  magnificent 
residence  in  the  Heavenly  City.  But  the  neglectful  and 
the  idle  man,  and  the  wicked  man,  who  shall  have  spent 
their  time  in  interrupting  the  useful  labours  of  others,  shall 
be  condemned  to  pass  their  lives  in  slavery,  or,  according 
to  the  degree  of  their  wickedness,  shall  be  condemned 
to  live  in  subterraneous  mines,  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth. 

"  '  From  time  to  time,  I  shall  send  ships  to  fetch  certain 
individuals  from  the  Earthly  Island,  to  reward  or  punish 
them,  according  as  they  have  done  well  or  ill;  and  as 
none  will  be  warned  beforehand,  of  the  time  of  the  coming 
of  my  messenger,  it  will  be  well  for  you  to  keep  watch,  that 
you  may  be  ready  to  perform  the  voyage,  and  worthy  to  be 
received  into  the  Heavenly  City.  It  will  not  be  permitted 
for  any  one  to  pass  by  stealth  on  board  the  ship,  and  leave 
his  abode  without  my  orders ;  for  such  a  one  shall  be  se- 
verely punished.  I  shall  have  the  most  certain  knowledge 
of  all  that  passes  in  the  Earthly  Island,  and  no  one  will  be 
able   to  deceive  me.     A  magical   mirror  will  at  all  times 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  165 

show  me  the  actions  of  each  individual  in  the  island,  and 
you  shall  be  judged  according  to  your  most  secret  thoughts 
and  actions.' 

"All  the  colonists  were  well  satisfied  with  the  discourse 
of  the  Great  King,  and  made  him  the  most  sacred  promises. 
After  a  short  time  allowed  for  repose  from  the  fatigue  of  the 
voyage,  a  portion  of  land,  and  the  proper  instruments  for 
labour,  were  distributed  to  each  of  the  strangers.  They 
received  also  seeds,  and  useful  plants,  and  young  trees,  for 
producing  them  refreshing  fruits.  Each  was  then  left  at 
liberty  to  act  as  he  pleased,  and  increase  the  value  of  what 
was  confided  to  his  care.  But  what  happened?  After 
some  time,  each  followed  the  suggestions  of  his  fancy:  one 
planted  his  land  with  arbours,  flowery  banks,  and  sweet- 
smelling  shrubs;  all  pleasing  to  the  sight,  but  which  brought 
forth  nothing.  Another  planted  wild  apple-trees,  instead  of 
the  good  fruit,  as  the  Great  King  had  commanded ;  content- 
ing himself  with  giving  high-sounding  names  to  the  worth- 
less fruit  he  had  caused  to  be  brought  forth.  A  third  had 
indeed  sown  good  grain;  but  not  knowing  how  to  distin- 
guish the  tares  that  grew  up  along  with  it,  he  pulled  up  the 
good  plants  before  they  were  mature,  and  left  only  the  tares 
in  his  ground.  But  the  greater  part  let  their  land  lie  fallow, 
and  bestowed  no  labour  upon  it,  having  spoiled  their  imple- 
ments, or  lost  their  seed,  either  from  negligence  or  idleness, 
or  liking  better  to  amuse  themselves  than  to  labour;  many 
of  them  had  wilfully  misunderstood  the  instructions  of  the 
Great  King,  and  sought  by  subtle  turns  to  change  their 
meaning. 

"Few,  very  few,  worked  with  diligence  and  courage, 
and  seeking  to  improve  their  land,  according  to  the  orders 
they  had  received.     The  great  fault  of  these  was,  that  they 


166  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

would  not  believe  what  the  Great  King  had  sent  to  tell 
them.  All  the  fathers  of  families  had  indeed  a  copy  of  the 
laws  of  the  Sovereign,  but  most  of  them  omitted  to  read  in 
the  book:  some  saying  that  it  was  useless  to  read  it,  for 
they  knew  it  by  heart,  while  they  never  employed  their 
thoughts  upon  it.  Others  pretended  that  these  laws  were 
good  for  times  past,  but  were  no  longer  beneficial  for  the 
present  state  of  the  country.  Some  had  even  the  audacity 
to  assert,  that  it  contained  many  inexplicable  contradictions; 
that  the  laws  it  prescribed  were  merely  supposed  or  falsi- 
fied, and  that  they  had  therefore  a  right  to  deviate  from 
them.  Others  among  them  maintained,  that  the  magical 
mirror  was  a  mere  fable;  that  the  King  was  of  too  merciful 
a  nature  to  keep  galleys;  that  there  was  no  such  place  as 
the  subterranean  mines;  and  that  all  would  at  last  enter  the 
Heavenly  City.  From  habit  they  continued  to  celebrate 
the  first  day  of  the  week,  but  by  far  the  smallest  part  of 
it  was  consecrated  to  the  honour  of  the  Great  King.  Great 
numbers  of  them  dispensed  with  going  to  the  general  as- 
sembly, either  from  idleness,  or  to  employ  themselves  in  oc- 
cupations which  had  been  expressly  forbidden.  By  far  the 
greater  part  of  the  people  considered  this  day  of  repose  as 
intended  for  pleasure,  and  thought  of  nothing  but  adorning 
and  amusing  themselves  as  soon  as  daylight  appeared. 
There  were  only  then  a  small  number  of  persons  who  kept  the 
'day  according  to  the  decree;  and  even  of  those  who  frequent- 
ed the  assembly,  many  had  their  thoughts  absent,  or  were 
sleepy,  or  engaged  in  forming  empty  projects,  instead  of 
listening  to  the  words  which  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  minister 
of  the  Sovereign.  The  Great  King,  however,  observed 
unalterably  the  laws  he  had  laid  down  and  announced,  re- 
specting them.     From  time  to  time,  some  frigates  appeared 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.         •  167 

on  their  coasts,  each  bearing  the  name  of  some  disastrous 
malady;  and  these  were  followed  by  a  large  ship  of  the  line, 
named  the  Grave,  on  board  of  which,  the  admiral,  whose 
name  was  Death,  caused  his  flag  of  two  colours,  green  and 
black,  to  be  constantly  floating  in  the  air.  He  showed  the 
colonists,  according  to  the  situation  in  which  he  found  them, 
either  the  smiling  colour  of  Hope,  or  the  gloomy  colour  of 
Despair. 

"  This  fleet  always  arrived  without  being  announced,  and 
seldom  gave  any  pleasure  to  the  inhabitants.  The  admiral 
sent  the  captains  of  his  frigates,  to  seize  the  persons  he  was 
ordered  to  bring  back  with  him.  Many  who  had  not  the 
smallest  inclination,  were  suddenly  embarked,  while  others, 
who  had  prepared  every  thing  for  the  harvest,  and  whose 
land  was  in  the  best  condition,  were  also  seized.  But  these 
last  took  their  departure  cheerfully,  and  without  alarm;  well 
knowing  that  nothing  but  happiness  awaited  them.  It  was 
those  who  were  conscious  they  had  neglected  to  cultivate 
their  land,  who  felt  the  most  regret.  It  was  even  necessary 
to  employ  force,  to  bring  them  under  subjection.  When 
the  fleet  was  ready  for  departure,  the  admiral  sailed  for  the 
port  of  the  Royal  Residence;  and  the  Great  King,  who  was 
present  on  their  arrival,  executed  with  strict  justice  both 
the  rewards  and  punishments  which  had  been  promised  to 
them.  All  the  excuses  alleged  by  those  who  had  been  idle, 
were  of  no  avail.  They  were  sent  to  the  mines  and  to  the 
galleys,  while  those  who  had  obeyed  the  Great  King,  and 
well  cultivated  their  land,  were  admitted  into  the  Heavenly 
City,  clothed  in  robes  of  brilliant  colours,  one  exceeding  the 
other  according  to  the  degree  of  merit." — Here,  my  dear 
children,  ends  my  _parable.  May  you  have  thoroughly  un- 
derstood its  meaning,  and  may  ycu  reap  the  advantage  it  is 


168  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

capable  of  affording  you!  Make  it  the  subject  of  your  re- 
flections the  whole  of  this  day.  You,  Fritz,  I  see,  are 
thoughtful:  tell  me  what  struck  you  most  in  my  narration. 

Fritz. — The  goodness  of  the  Great  King,  and  the  ingrati- 
tude of  the  colonists,  father. 

Father. — And  you,  Ernest,  what  is  your  thought? 

Ernest. — For  my  part,  I  think  they  were  great  fools  to 
have  made  so  bad  a  calculation.  What  did  they  get  by 
conducting  themselves  as  they  did?  With  a  little  pains  they 
might  have  passed  a  very  agreeable  sort  of  life  in  the  island, 
and  would  have  been  sure  of  going  afterwards  to  the  Hea- 
venly City. 

Jack. — To  the  mines,  gentlemen,  away  with-  you!  you 
have  well  deserved  it. 

Francis. — For  my  part,  I  should  have  liked  best  to  have 
lived  with  the  men  who  were  dressed  in  the  colours  of  the 
rainbow.      How  beautifully  they  must  have  looked! 

Father. — This  is  well,  my  boys.  I  perceive  that  each  of 
you,  according  to  his  age  and  character,  has  seized  the 
meaning  of  my  parable.  I  have  by  this  image  endeavoured 
to  represent  to  you  the  conduct  of  God  towards  man,  and 
that  of  man  towards  God:  let  us  see  now  if  you  have  com- 
pletely seized  the  sense. — I  then  put  different  questions  to 
them,  and  explained  what  they  had  not  perfectly  compre- 
hended; and  after  a  short  review  of  the  principal  parts  of 
my  discourse,  I  concluded  by  a  moral  application. 

"  Human  creatures,"  said  I,  "  are  the  colonists  of  God; 
we  are  required  to  perforin  the  business  of  probation  for  a 
certain  period,  and,  sooner  or  later,  are  destined  to  be  ta- 
ken hence.  Our  final  destination  is  Heaven,  and  a  perfect 
happiness  with  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,  and  in 
the  presence  of  the  bountiful  Father  of  us  all.     The  piece 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON.  169 

of  land  entrusted  to  each  is  the  soul;  and  according  as  he 
cultivates  and  ennobles  it,  or  neglects  or  depraves  it,  will 
be  his  future  reward  or  punishment.  At  present,  dear  chil- 
dren, that  you  know  the  true  sense  of  my  parable,  each  of 
jou  should  make  the  application  of  it  according  to  his  own 
consciousness.  You,  Fritz,  should  think  of  the  subjects  who 
planted  the  wild  apples,  and  wished  to  make  them  pass  for 
sweet  savoury  fruit  of  a  superior  kind.  These  represent 
persons  who  make  a  parade  of  the  natural  virtues  belonging 
to  their  character,  and  which  are  consequently  exercised 
without  any  trouble  to  themselves;  such  as  courage, 
strength,  &c;  who  prefer  them  to  more  essential  qualities 
acquired  by  others,  with  sacrifices  and  labour  to  themselves; 
and  who,  full  of  presumption  and  arrogance,  consider  them- 
selves as  irreproachable,  because  nature  has  given  them 
personal  courage,  and  bodily  strength,  and  a  certain  skill 
in  the  use  of  these  qualities; 

"  You,  Ernest,  should  think  of  the  subjects  of  the  Great 
King,  who  cultivated  their  land  so  as  to  produce  arbours, 
flowery  banks,  and  sweet-smelling  shrubs,  and  such  produc- 
tions in  general  as  would  please  the  eye,  but  which  produc- 
ed no  fruit.  These  are  they,  who  give  their  whole  atten- 
tion to  the  acquiring  unfruitful  knowledge,  sciences,  &.c. 
and  consider  with  a  sort  of  contempt  the  things  more  imme- 
diately required  for  the  conduct  of  life;  who  exert  them- 
selves solely  for  the  understanding,  and  neglect  the  heart; 
whose  principal  aim  it  is,  to  obtain  self-indulgences,  and 
who  neglect  what  is  useful  in  society. 

"  You,  Jack,  and  you,  Francis,  should  apply  to  your- 
selves the  case  of  those  men  who  let  their  land  lie  fallow, 
or,  in  their  thoughtlessness,  mistook  the  grain,  and  sowed 
tares  instead  of  wheat.     These  are  the  neglectful  subjects, 


170  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

who  neither  think  nor  learn,  but  give  to  the  winds  what  is 
taught  them,  or  entirely  forget  instruction;  who  reject  vir- 
tuous sentiments,  and  let  the  bad  ones  grow  in  their  hearts. 
But  for  ourselves,  one  and  all,  we  will  adopt  the  model  of 
the  good  and  zealous  labourers;  and  should  our  exertions  be 
a  little  painful,  we  shall  think  of  the  reward  which  awaits  us, 
when  we  shall  have  adorned  our  souls  with  all  that  is  good, 
just,  and  praiseworthy.  Thus,  when  death,  which  cannot 
fail  to  come  at  last,  shall  summon  us,  we  may  follow  him 
with  joy  to  the  throne  of  the  Good  and  Great  King,  to  hear 
him  pronounce  these  sweet  and  consoling  words:  'O  good 
and  faithful  servant!  thou  hast  been  tried,  and  found  faithful 
in  many  things;  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord.'" 
— With  these  words,  and  a  short  prayer  of  benediction,  1 
concluded  the  solemnity  of  our  Sunday;  and  I  had  the  satis- 
faction of  seeing,  that  my  four  sons  had  not  only  listened  at- 
tentively, but  that  they  were  struck  with  the  application  I 
had  made  to  each  of  them. — They  remained  for  a  short  time 
reflecting  in  silence.  Jack  was  the  first  to  break  it : — ' '  You 
have  explained  to  us  every  part  of  the  parable,  father, 
except  the  copy  of  the  laws  of  the  Great  King,  which  was  to 
be  kept  and  read  in  every  family:  have  you  one  of  these 
copies?  for  you  never  read  it  to  us." 

Father. — My  children,  this  copy  is  the  Holy  Bible,  which 
contains  all  God's  laws,  and  which  we  ought  constantly  to 
study.  I  cannot  forgive  myself  for  not  having  thought  of 
bringing  it  from  the  vessel.  Should  we  not  be  able  to  go 
another  voyage,  we  shall  forever  be  deprived  of  this  divine 
doctrine. 

My  Wife. — Have  you  then  forgot  my  enchanted  bag, 
which  I  have  promised  shall  furnish  every  thing  you  can 
desire?     You  wish  for  a  Bible.     In  a  minute  I  will  put  one 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  171 

into  your  hands;  and  heartily  do  I  rejoice  in  having  the 
power  to  procure  you  so  great  a  satisfaction. 

Father. — Most  excellent  of  women!  Give  me  then  the 
inestimable  book,  these  laws  of  the  Great  King,  which  from 
this  moment  we  will  take  for  the  rule  of  our  lives.  She 
opened  her  bag,  and  with  joy  I  received  from  her  the  book 
of  life.  I  opened  it,  and  read  some  passages  from  it  to  my 
family.  In  this  solitude,  in  which  for  so  long  a  time  we  had 
heard  only  our  own  thoughts  expressed  in  an  appropriate 
language,  we  were  singularly  affected  with  the  voice  from 
Heaven,  which  now  seemed  to  address  us:  we  felt  forcibly 
that,  notwithstanding  our  exile,  we  were  still  connected  with 
the  community  of  mankind  by  the  invisible  tie  of  the  same 
religion,  and  the  same  Father:  we  were  forever  numbered 
among  the  children  of  God,  to  whom  he  enjoins  laws,  and 
on  whom  he  bestows  his  care,  no  less  in  a  desert,  than  in  an 
immense  capital.  I. explained  with  the  utmost  care  what  I 
read  to  them,  and  I  gave  the  book  in  turn  to  each  of  the 
boys,  that  they  might  have  the  pleasure  of  reading  for  them- 
selves. I  chose  in  preference,  such  passages  as  were  ap- 
plicable to  our  circumstances.  We  then  raised  our  hearts 
to  God,  to  thank  him  for  so  signal  a  benefit  as  the  preserva- 
tion of  our  Bible.  My  young  folks  still  remained  thoughtful 
and  serious;  but  by  and  by  the  gaiety  natural  to  their  age 
prevailed,  and  each  slipped  away  to  seek  the  recreation  he 
liked  best. 

The  next  morning,  the  boys  assembled  round  me  with  a 
petition  that  I  would  show  them  how  to  use  arrows.  We 
accordingly  sat  down  on  the  grass;  I  took  out  my  knife, 
and,  with  the  remains  of  a  bamboo  cane,  began  to  make  a 
bow.  I  was  well  satisfied  to  observe  them  one  and  all  take  a 
fancy  to  shooting  with  an  arrow,  having  been  desirous  to  ac- 


172  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

custom  them  to  this  exercise,  which  constituted  the  prin- 
cipal defence  of  the  warriors  of  old,  and  might  possibly  be- 
come our  only  means  of  protection  and  subsistence:  our  pro- 
vision of  powder  must  at  last  be  exhausted;  we  might  even, 
from  moment  to  moment,  be  deprived  of  it  by  accident;  it 
therefore  was  of  the  utmost  importance  to  us,  to  acquire  some 
other  means  of  killing  animals,  or  attacking  our  enemies. 
The  Caribbees,  I  recollected,  were  taught  at  a  very  tender 
age,  to  strike  an  object  at  the  distance  of  thirty  or  forty 
steps;  they  hit  the  smallest  birds  perched  on  the  top  of  the 
tallest  trees.  Why  then  should  it  not  be  possible  for  my 
boys  to  learn  to  do  the  same  ? 

While  I  was  silently  reflecting  on  the  subject,  employed 
in  finishing  a  bow,  Ernest,  who  had  been  observing  me  for 
some  time,  slipped  suddenly  away;  and  Fritz  coining  up  at 
the  same  moment,  with  the  wetted  skin  of  the  tiger-cat  in 
his  hand,  I  paid  no  attention  to  the  circumstance.  I  began 
my  instructions  to  my  eldest  boy  respecting  the  trade  of  a 
tanner.  I  told  him  the  method  of  getting  rid  of  the  fat  of 
the  skin,  by  rubbing  it  over  with  sand,  and  placing  it  in 
running  water  till  it  had  no  longer  any  appearance  of  flesh, 
or  any  smell;  next  to  rub  it  with  soft  butter,  to  make  it  sup- 
ple, and  then  to  stretch  the  skin  in  different  directions;  and 
also  to  make  use  of  some  eggs  in  the  operation,  if  his  mo- 
ther could  spare  them.  You  will  not  at  first  produce  such 
excellent  workmanship  as  I  have  seen  of  this  kind  from 
England;  but  with  a  little  patience,  regretting  neither  your 
time  nor  your  labour,  you  will  have  completed  some  decent- 
looking  cases,  which  will  give  you  the  more  pleasure,  from 
being  the  work  of  your  own  hands.  WThen  your  skin  shall 
have  thus  been  prepared,  Cut  certain  small  cylinders  of  wood 
of  the  size  and  length  required;   scoop  these  cylinders  hoi- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  173 

low,  so  as  to  form  a  convenient  case  for  a  knife,  a  fork,  or 
a  spoon;  then  stretch  your  softened  skin  upon  the  surface 
of  the  cylinders,  in  such  a  manner,  that  the  skin  may  reach 
a  little  beyond  the  extremity  of  the  wood,  and  close  at  the 
top;  you  have  nothing  more  to  do,  than  to  let  the  skin  cling 
to,  and  dry  upon  these  moulds. 

At  this  moment  we  heard  the  firing  of  a  gun,  which  proceed- 
ed from  our  tent  in  the  tree,  and  two  birds  at  the  same  time 
fell  dead  at  our  feet.  We  were  at  once  surprised  and  alarm- 
ed, and  all  eyes  were  turned  upwards  to  the  place.  There 
we  saw  Ernest  standing  outside  the  tent,  a  gun  in  his  hand, 
and  heard  him  triumphantly  exclaiming,  "  catch  them!  catch 
them  there!  I  have  hit  them;  and  you  see  I  did  not  run  away 
for  nothing."  He  descended  the  ladder  joyfully,  and  ran 
with  Francis  to  take  up  the  two  birds;  while  Fritz  and  Jack 
mounted  to  our  castle,  hoping  to  meet  with  the  same  luck. 

One  of  the  dead  birds  proved  to  be  a  sort  of  thrush,  and 
the  other  was  a  very  small  kind  of  pigeon,  which  in  the  An- 
tilles is  called  an  ortolan:  they  are  very  fat,  and  of  a  deli- 
cious taste.  We  now  observed,  for  the  first  time,  that  the 
wild  figs  began  to  ripen,  and  that  they  attracted  these  birds. 
I  foresaw,  in  consequence,  that  we  were  about  to  have  our 
table  furnished  with  a  dish  which  even  a  nobleman  might 
envy  us.  I  gave  the  boys  leave  to  kill  as  many  of  them 
as  they  liked.  I  knew  that,  half  roasted  and  put  into 
barrels  with  melted  butter  thrown  over  them,  they  would 
keep  a  long  time,  and  might  prove  an  excellent  resource. 
My  wife  set  about  stripping  off  the  feathers  of  the  birds, 
to  dress  them  for  our  dinner.  I  seated  myself  by  her  side, 
and  proceeded  in  my  work  of  arrow-making. 

Thus  finished  another  day.  Supper  ended,  and  prayers 
said,  we  ascended  the  ladder  in  procession;  and  each  got 
into  his  hammock  to  taste  the  sweets  of  a  tranquil  sleep. 


174  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Conversation,  a  Walk,  and  important  Discoveries. 

Jack  had  finished  the  trial  of  his  arrows:  they  flew  to 
admiration;  and  he  practised  his  new  art  incessantly.  Lit- 
tle Francis  waited  with  impatience  for  the  moment  when  he 
should  try  also,  and  followed  with  his  eyes  every  stroke  I 
made.  But  when  I  had  finished  my  bow,  and  prepared 
some  little  arrows  for  him,  I  must  next  undertake  to  make  him 
a  quiver;  I  took  some  bark  from  the  branch  of  a  tree,  which 
came  off  in  a  round  form;  and  folding  the  edges  over  each 
other,  I  stuck  them  together  with  some  glue  produced  from 
our  soupcakes.  I  next  stuck  on  a  round  piece  to  serve  for 
the  bottom;  and  then  tied  to  it  a  loop  of  string  which  I  hung 
round  his  neck.  He  put  his  arrows  into  it;  and,  quite  hap- 
py, took  his  bow  in  his  hand,  and  ran  to  try  his  skill  by  the 
side  of  his  brother.  Fritz  had  also  cleaned  and  prepared 
his  materials  for  the  cases,  when  his  mother  summoned  us 
to  dinner.  We  cheerfully  placed  ourselves  under  the  shade 
of  our  tree,  round  the  table  I  had  manufactured.  At  the 
end  of  the  repast,  I  made  the  following  proposition  to  the 
boys,  which  I  was  sure  would  give  them  pleasure. 

"  What  think  you,  my  good  friends,"  said  I,  "of  giving 
a  name  to  the  place  of  our  abode,  and  to  the  different  parts 
of  the  country  which  are  known  to  us?  I  do  not  mean  a 
general  name  to  the  whole  island,  but  to  the  objects  we  are 
most  concerned  with:  this  will  make  us  better  understand 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  175 

each  other,  when  conversing  about  them;  and  also  present 
to  us  the  soothing  illusion,  of  inhabiting  a  country  already 
known  and  peopled." 

They  all  exclaimed,  joyfully,  that  the  idea  was  excellent. 

Jack. — Oh!  pray,  father,  let  us  invent  some  very  long 
names,  and  that  are  very  difficult  to  be  pronounced.  I 
should  be  glad  that  those  who  shall  read  about  us,  should 
be  a  little  puzzled  to  remember  the  names  of  the  places  and 
things  that  belonged  to  us.  What  pains  has  it  not  cost 
me  to  remember  their  Monomotapa,  their  Zanguebar,  their 
Coromandel,  and  many  other  still  more  difficult.  *  Ah!  now 
we  shall  take  our  revenge  of  them. 

Father. — This  would  be  well,  if  it  were  probable  that  our 
history  in  this  country,  and  the  names  we  shall  have  bestow- 
ed, were  likely  to  be  objects  of  public  curiosity;  but  in  the 
meanwhile  you  forget  that  our  own  organs  will  be  fatigued, 
by  frequently  pronouncing  such  barbarous  words  as  you 
propose. 

Jack. — How  shall  we  manage,  then?  What  pretty  hame3 
can  we  find? 

Father. — We  will  do  as  all  sorts  of  nations  have  done  be- 
fore us.  We  will  call  the  places  by  different  words  from 
our  own  language,  that  shall  express  some  particular  cir- 
cumstance with  which  we  have  been  concerned. 

Jack. — Well,  so  we  will:  I  shall  like  this  still  better. 
Where  shall  we  begin  ? 

Father. — We  shall  naturally  begin  with  the  bay  bv  which 
we  entered  this  country.  What  shall  we  call  it  ?  What  say 
you,  Fritz?     You  must  speak  first,  for  you  are  the  eldest. 

Fritz. ---Let  us  call  it  Oyster  Bay:  you  remember  what 
quantities  of  oysters  we  found  in  it. 

Jack. — Oh,  no!  let  it  rather  be  called  Lobster  Bay:  for 


17b  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

you  cannot  have  forgot  what  a  large  one  it  was  that  caught 
hold  of  my  leg,  and  which  I  carried  home  to  you. 

Ernest. — Why  then  we  may  as  well  call  it  the  Bay  of 
Tears,  for  you  must  remember  that  you  blubbered  loud 
enough  for  all  of  us  to  hear  you. 

My  Wife. — My  advice  would  be  that,  out  of  gratitude  to 
God,  who  conducted  us  hither  in  safety,  we  ought  to  call  it 
Providence  Bay,  or  the  Bay  of  Safety. 

Father. — These  words  are  both  appropriate  and  sonorous, 
and  please  me  extremely.  But  what  name  shall  we  give  to 
the  spot  where  we  first  set  up  our  tent? 

Fritz. — Let  us  call  it  simply  Tent  House. 

Father. — That  will  do  very  well.  And  the  little  islet  at 
the  entrance  of  Providence  Bay,  in  which  we  found  so  many 
planks  and  beams  that  enabled  us  to  make  our  bridge,  how 
shall  it  be  named? 

Ernest. — It  may  be  called  Sea-Gull  Island,  or  Shark  Is- 
land; for  it  was  here  we  saw  those  animals. 

Father. — I  am  for  the  last  of  these  names,  Shark  Island: 
for  it  was  the  shark  that  was  the  cause  of  the  sea-gulls  be- 
ing there;  and  thus  we  shall  also  have  a  means  of  commem- 
orating the  courage  and  the  triumph  of  Fritz,  who  killed 
the  monster. 

Jack. — For  the  same  reason,  we  will  call  the  marsh,  in 
which  you  cut  the  canes  for  our  arrows,  Flamingo  Marsh. 

Father. — Quite  right,  I  think;  and  the  plain,  through 
which  we  passed  on  our  way  to  this  place,  Porcupine  Field,  in 
memory  of  your  skilful  encounter  with  the  animal.  But  now 
comes  the  great  question, — What  name  shall  we  give  to  our 
present  abode? 

Ernest.—  It  ought  to  be  called,  simply,  Tree  Castle. 

Fritz. — No,  no,  that  will  not  do  at  all;  that  is  the  same 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON.       .  177 

as  if,  when  we  wanted  to  name  a  town,  we  called  it  The 
Town.     Let  us  invent  a  more  noble  name. 

Jack. — Yes,  so  we  will.     I  say  Fig  Town. 

Fritz. — Ha,  ha,  ha!  a  noble  name,  it  must  be  confessed! 
Let  us  call  it  The  Eagle's  Nest,  which  I  am  sure  has  a  much 
better  sound.  Besides,  our  habitation  in  the  tree,  is  really 
much  more  like  a  nest,  than  a  town,  and  the  eagle  cannot 
but  ennoble  it,  since  he  is  the  king  of  birds. 

Father. — Will  you  let  me  decide  the  question  for  you?  I 
think  our  abode  should  be  called  The.  Falcon's  Nest;  for, 
you  are  not  arrived  at  the  dignity  of  eagles,  but  are,  too  tru- 
ly, poor  simple  birds  of  prey;  and  like  the  falcon,  you  also 
are,  I  trust,  obedient,  docile,  active,  and  courageous.  Er- 
nest can  have  no  objection  to  this;  for,  as  he  knows,  falcons 
make  their  nests  in  large  trees.  All  exclaimed,  clapping 
their  hands,  "  Yes,  yes,  we  will  have  it  The  Falcon's  Nest! 
the  sound  is  quite  chivalrous;  so  health  to  Falcon's  Nest 
Castle!"  cried  they,  all  looking  up  to  the  tree,  and  making 
low  bows.  I  poured  out  a  small  quantity  of  sweet  wine,  and 
presented  it  to  each,  to  solemnize  our  baptism. — "  Now 
then,"  said  I,  "for  the  promontory,  where  Fritz  and  I  in 
vain  wearied  our  eyes,  in  search  of  our  companions  of  the 
vessel  ?  I  think  it  may  properly  be  called  Cape  Disappoint- 
ment." 

JUL — Yes,  this  is  excellent.  And  the  river  with  the 
bridge 

Father. — If  you  wish  to  commemorate  one  of  the  greatest 
events  of  our  history,  it  ought  to  be  called  The  Jackall's 
River;  for  these  animals  crossed  it  when  they  came  and 
attacked  us,  and  it  was  there  that  one  of  them  was  killed. 
The  bridge  I  should  name  Family  Bridge,  because  we  were 
all  employed  in  its  construction,  and  all  crossed  it  together 

12 


178  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

in  our  way  to  this  place  Let  me  ask  you  all,  if  it  will  not 
be  a  great  pleasure  to  converse  about  the  country  we  inhab- 
it, now  that  we  have  instituted  names  as  if  every  thing 
belonged  to  us? 

Ernest. — It  will  be  just  as  if  we  had  farms  and  country 
houses,  all  dependent  upon  our  castle. 

Francis. — It  is  the  same  as  if  we  were  kings. 

My  Wife. — And  the  queen-mother  is  not  without  hope, 
that  her  little  slips  of  majesty  will  conduct  themselves  mer- 
cifully towards  their  subjects,  the  birds,  the  agoutis,  the 

geese,   and    the  flamingoes;   the What  more  shall  I 

say?  for  I  do  not  know  the  family  name  of  all  your  vassals. 
Let  me  therefore  end,  by  hoping  that  you  will  not  depopu- 
late your  kingdom. 

Fritz. — No,  mother,  we  will  take  care  of  that.  We  will 
endeavour  to  extirpate  only  those  among  our  subjects  who 
are  wicked. 

In  this  pleasing  kind  of  chat,  the  time  of  dinner  passed 
agreeably  away.  We  settled  the  basis  of  a  geography  of 
this  our  new  country;  and  amused  ourselves  with  saying, 
that  it  must  go  by  the  first  post  to  Europe. 

As  the  evening  advanced,  and  the  intense  heat  of  the  day 
began  to  diminish,  I  invited  all  my  family  to  take  a  walk. 
"Leave  your  work  for  this  time,  my  boys,"  said  I,  "and 
let  us  make  a  short  excursion;  let  us  seek,  in  the  beautiful 
face  of  nature,  the  traces  of  the  wisdom  and  goodness  of  the 
Creator.     Which  way  shall  we  direct  our  steps?" 

Fritz. — Let  us  go  to  Tent  House,  father;  we  are  in  want 
of  powder  and  shot  for  the  little  consumers  of  our  figs;  nor 
must  we  miss  our  dinner  for  to-morrow,  or  forget  that  we 
are  to  secure  a  supply  for  winter. 

My  Wife. — I  too  vote  for  Tent  House;  my  butter  is  near- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  179 

ly  gone,  for  Fritz  took  an  unreasonable  share  for  his  new 
trade  of  tanning;  also,  I  have  never  failed  to  observe,  that 
those  who  most  zealously  preach  a  life  of  frugality  and 
economy,  are  at  least  as  Well  satisfied  as  the  rest,  when  I 
present  them  with'a  savoury  dinner. 

Ernest. — If  we  goto  Tent  House,  let  us  try  to  bring  away 
some  of  the  geese  and  ducks  with  us:  they  will  look  very 
well  swimming  about  in  our  stream  here,  by  Falcon's  Nest. 

Jack. — I  will  undertake  to  catch  them,  if  any  one  will 
help  to  bring  them  home. 

Francis. — And  I  will  catch  my  handkerchief  full  of  lob- 
sters in  the  Jackall's  River,  and  we  will  put  them  into  Fal- 
con's Stream,  where,  no  doubt,  they  will  thrive  to  admira- 
tion. 

Father. — You  really  all  of  you  assign  such  good  reasons, 
that  I  see  T  must  yield  to  them.  To  Tent  House,  then,  we 
will  go;  but  we  will  not  take  our  accustomed  road  along  the 
sea-shore,  but  rather  vary  our  pleasure,  by  trying  to  explore 
some  other  way.  We  will  keep  along  our  own  little  stream 
as  far  as  the  wall  of  rocks:  it  will  be  easy  for  us  to  cross  it, 
by  jumping  from  stone  to  stone,  and  so  to  get  to  Tent 
House:  we  will  return  with  our  provisions  by  the  road  of 
Family  Bridge,  and  along  the  sea-shore.  This  new  route 
may  possibly  furnish  some  additional  discoveries. 

My  idea  was  highly  applauded,  and  all  was  soon  arrang- 
ed for  our  setting  out.  Fritz  was  adorned  with  his  fine 
tiger-cat-made  belt.  Jack  had  his  belt  also  armed  with  two 
pistols,  round  his  waist.  Each  carried  a  gun  and  a  game 
bag;  even  little  Francis  had  his  bow  in  his  hand,  and  his 
quiver  on  his  shoulder.  Their  mother  was  the  only  person 
not  burdened  with  a  gun;  but  she  carried  her  large  butter- 
pot,  to  fill  it  at  our  large  storehouse.     Turk  marched  before 


180  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

us,  with  his  coat  of  mail  studded  with  spikes,  but  it  was  ap- 
parent that  he  felt  intimidated  and  ill  at  ease;  his  step  was 
therefore  slow  and  quiet. 

Our  route  along  the  stream  was  at  first  extremely  agree- 
able, being  sheltered  by  the  shade  of  large  trees,  while  the 
ground  under  our  feet  was  a  short  and  soft  kind  of  grass. 
To  prolong  the  pleasure  of  our  walk,  we  proceeded  slowly, 
amusing  ourselves  with  looking  about  us  to  the  right  and 
left;  the  eldest  boys  made  frequent  escapes  on  before,  so 
that  we  sometimes  lost  sight  of  them.  In  this  manner  we 
reached  the  end  of  the  wood;  but  the  country  now  appear- 
ing to  be  less  open,  we  thought  it  would  be  prudent  to  bring 
our  whole  company  together.  On  looking  forward,  we  saw 
the  boys  approaching  us  full  gallop,  and  this  time,  for  a 
wonder,  the  grave  Ernest  was  first.  He  reached  me  pant- 
ing for  breath,  and  so  full  of  joy  and  eagerness,  that  he 
could  not  pronounce  a  single  word  distinctly;  but  he  held 
out  his  hand,  which  contained  three  little  balls  of  a  light 
green  colour. 

"We  have  found  a  prize,  indeed,  father,"  cried  he  at 
last,  when  he  had  recovered  his  voice;  "we  have  found 
some  potato  seed!" 

"What  say  you?  potato  seed?"  inquired  I  joyfully; 
"have  you  really  been  so  fortunate?  Come  near,  every 
one  of  you,  and  let  me  look  at  your  little  balls;"  fori  scarce- 
ly dared  believe  in  so  happy  an  event,  as  the  discovery  of 
a  plant  which  would  place  us  forever  beyond  the  reach  of 
hunger,  and  even  of  apprehension. 

We  all  hastened  to  the  place  where  these  tubercles  had 
been  gathered,  and,  with  extreme  joy  we  found  there  a  large 
plantation  of  potato  plants;  a  number  of  them  were  cover- 
ed with  their  lilac  and  yellow  blossoms,  the  sight  of  which 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  181 

conveyed  more  pleasure  to  our  hearts  than  if  they  had  been 
the  most  fragrant  roses.  Jack  bawled  out,  jumping  for  joy, 
"They  are  really  potatoes!  and  though  it  was  not  I  who 
discovered  them,  at  least  it  shall  be  I  who  will  dig  thern 
up."  Saying  this,  he  knelt  down  and  began  to  scratch  them 
up  from  the  earth  with  his  hands;  the  rest  of  us,  unwilling 
to  be  idle  spectators,  set  to  work  also:  with  our  knives  and 
sticks  we  soon  procured  a  sufficient  number  to  fill  our  bags 
and  our  pockets. 

"There  are,"  observed  I,  "  different  kinds  of  vegetables, 
more  succulent  and  more  delicate  than  the  potato;  but  it  is 
this  plain  sustenance,  that  can  be  eaten  for  the  longest  time 
together,  without  satiety:  accordingly,  food  of  this  nature, 
such  as  bread,  rice,  potatoes,  obtains  on  the  whole,  a  pre- 
ference over  provisions  possessing  a  higher  flavour.  Can 
you  tell  me,  boys,  the  reason  of  this?" 

Ernest. — I  know;  it  is  because  they  are  more  whole- 
some. 

Jack. — And  because  they  occasion  no  disgust:  I  could 
eat  potatoes  every  day  of  my  life,  without  being  tired  of 
them. 

Father. — All  you  say  is  true;  in  future  they  will  serve  us 
for  bread,  and  often  indeed  for  our  whole  dinner.  But  let 
us  for  the  present  dismiss  the  subject  of  our  unexpected 
good  fortune,  and  resume  our  expedition. 


182  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Continuation  of  the  preceding  Chapter;  and  more  Discoveries. 

Conversing  on  different  subjects,  we  reached  the  long 
chain  of  rocks,  over  which  our  pretty  Falcon  Stream  made 
its  escape  in  a  cascade,  delighting  at  once  the  eye  and  the 
ear  in  its  progress.  We  thus  reached  JackalPs  River,,  and 
from  thence  to  Tent-House,  having  with  difficulty  pushed 
through  the  high  grass  which  presented  itself.  Our  fatigue, 
however,  was  relieved  by  the  uncommon  beauty  of  the 
scenery  around:  on  the  right  hand  was  a  boundless  sea;  on 
the  left,  the  island,  with  the  bay  by  which  it  was  accessible, 
and  the  chain  of  rocks,  forming  altogether  an  assemblage  of 
the  picturesque,  equal  to  what  the  liveliest  fancy  could  de- 
sire. We  distinguished  different  families  of  grasses,  many 
of  them  of  the  thorn-leaved  species,  and  stronger  than  those 
cultivated  in  the  green-houses  of  Europe.  There  was  also 
in  abundance  the  Indian  fig,  with  its  large  broad  leaf;  aloes 
of  different  forms  and  colours;  the  superb  prickly  candle, 
or  cactus,  bearing  straight  stalks,  taller  than  a  man,  and 
crowned  with  long  straight  branches,  forming  a  sort  of  star. 
The  broad  plantain  spread  along  the  rocks  its  innumerable 
boughs  twisted  with  each  other,  hanging  down  perpendicu-^ 
larly,  and  ornamented  with  flowers,  which  grew  in  large 
tufts,  and  were  of  the  brightest  rose-colour,  while  that  which 
pleased  us  best,  and  which  was  found  there  in  great  abun- 
dance, was  the  king  of  fruits,  both  for  figure  and  relish,  the 
crowned  pine-apple,  of  which  we  all  partook  with  avidity. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  183 

Soon  after,  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  discover  among  the 
multitude  of  plants  which  grew  either  at  the  foot  or  in  the 
clefts  of  the  rock,  the  karata  (the  Bromelia  Karata  of  Lin- 
naeus), many  of  which  were  now  in  blossom.  Travellers 
have  given  so  perfect  a  description  of  this  plant,  that  it  was 
impossible  I  should  mistake  it.  I  pointed  out  to  the  boys 
the  immense  size  of  its  leaves,  hollowed  in  the  middle  like 
a  saucer,  in  which  rain  is  for  a  long  time  preserved;  also, 
its  beautiful  red  flowery.  As  I  was  acquainted  with  the 
properties  of  this  useful  plant,  the  pith  of  which  is  used  as 
tinder  by  the  Negroes,  who  also  make  a  strong  kind  of 
thread  from  the  fibres  of  its  leaves,  I  was  not  less  satisfied 
with  the  discovery  than  I  had  been  with  that  of  the  potatoes. 
Wishing  to  exhibit  one  of  its  uses  to  my  children,  I  desired 
Ernest  to  take  out  my  flint  and  steel. 

I  took  a  dried  stalk  of  the  tree,  stripped  off  the  bark,  and 
there  appeared  a  kind  of  dry  spongy  substance,  which  I  laid 
upon  the  flint;  and  then  striking  it  with  a  steel,  it  instantly 
caught  fire.  The  boys  looked  on  with  astonishment,  and 
soon  began  to  caper  about,  exclaiming:  "Long  live  the 
tinder-tree!" 

"Here,  then,"  said  I,  ."we  have  an  article  of  greater 
usefulness  than  if  it  served  merely  to  gratify  the  appetite. 
Your  mother  will  next  inform  us  what  materials  she  will  use 
for  sewing  your  clothes,  when  her  provision  of  thread  from 
the  enchanted  bag  is  exhausted." 

My  Wife. — I  have  long  been  uneasy  upon  this  very  sub 
ject,  and  would  willingly  exchange  our  greatest  luxury  for 
some  hemp  or  flax. 

Father. — And  your  wish  shall  be  accomplished.  If  you 
examine,  you  will  find  some  excellent  thread  under  the 
leaves  of  this  extraordinary  plant,  where  all-provident  nature 


184  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

has  placed  a  storehouse  of  this  valuable  article,  though  the 
lengths  of  thread  will  be  found  not  longer  than  the  leaf.  I 
accordingly  drew  out  of  one  of  the  leaves  a  strong  piece  of 
thread  of  a  red  colour,  which  I  gave  to  my  wife.  "  How 
fortunate  it  is  for  us,"  said  she,  "that  you  have  had  the 
habit  of  reading  and  of  study!  None  of  us  would  have  had 
a  thought  about  this  plant,  or  have  conceived  that  it  could 
be  of  any  use: — but  will  it  not  be  difficult  to  draw  out  the 
lengths  of  thread  through  the  .  prickles  that  surround 
them?" 

Father. — Not  in  the  least;  we  shall  put  the  leaves  to  dry, 
either  in  the  sun,  or  by  a  gentle  fire.  The  useless  part  of 
the  leaf  will  then  separate  by  being  beaten,  and  the  mass  of 
thread  will  remain. 

Fritz. — I  see  clearly,  father,  that  we  ought  not  to  trust  to 
appearances;  but  one  may,  I  suppose,  assert  that  there  are 
no  good  qualities  in  the  prickly  plants,  which  are  growing 
here  in  all  directions,  and  wounding  the  persons  who  go 
near  them:   of  what  use  can  they  possibly  be? 

Father. — The  greatest  part  of  these  possess  medicinal 
virtues;  great  use  is  made  in  pharmacy  of  the  aloe,  which 
produces  such  abundance  of  beautiful  flowers;  in  green- 
houses in  Europe,  some  have  been  seen  to  bear  more  than 
three  thousand  blossoms.  At  Carlsbad,  upon  the  estates  of 
Count  de  Limbourg,  there  was  an  aloe-tree  twenty-six  feet 
in  height;  it  had  twenty-eight  branches,  which  branches 
bore  more  than  three  thousand  blossoms  in  the  space  of  a 
month.  At  Paris,  at  Leyden,  in  Denmark,  there  have  been 
also  seen  some  exceedingly  curious  specimens  of  this  tree; 
many  of  them  are  full  of  a  resinous  sort  of  sap,  of  which 
valuable  gums  are  made.  But  look,  here,  too,  is  the  Indian 
fig,  or  prickly  pear,  a  vegetable  of  no  common  interest; 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  185 

it  grows  in  the  poorest  soils,  and,  as  you  see,  upon  the 
rocks;  the  poorer  the  soil,  the  more  luxuriant  and  succulent 
its  leaves;  I  should  be  tempted  to  believe  that  it  was  nour- 
ished by  the  air  rather  than  by  the  earth.  It  is  also  called 
the  racket-tree,  from  the  resemblance  of  its  long,  thick,  flat 
leaves  to  that  well-known  instrument.  The  plant  bears  a 
kind  of  fig,  which  is  said  to  be  sweet  and  palatable  when 
ripened  in  its  native,  sun,  and  it  is  a  salutary  and  refreshing 
food.  This,  then,  is  another  plant  of  great  utility.  I  next 
instructed  them  how  to  gather  this  prickly  fruit  without  in- 
jury to  their  ringers.  I  threw  up  a  stone,  and  brought  down 
a  fig,  which  I  caught  upon  my  hat;  I  cut  off  one  end,  and 
was  thus  enabled  to  hold  it  on  a  knife  while  I  peeled  off  the 
skin.  I  then  resigned  it  to  the  curiosity  of  my  young  com- 
panions. 

The  novelty,  rather  than  the  taste,  of  the  fruit,  made  them 
think  it  excellent:  they  all  found  means  to  gather  some  of 
the  fiffs,  and  each  was  busied  in  inventing  the  best  method 
of  taking  off  the  skins.  In  the  meantime,  I  perceived  Er- 
nest holding  a  fig  upon  the  end  of  his  knife,  turning  it  about 
in  all  directions,  and  bringing  it  close  to  his  eye  with  a  look 
of  curious  inquiry. — "  I  wish  I  could  know,"  said  at  length 
our  young  observer,  "  what  little  animals  these  are  in  the 
fig,  which  feed  so  eagerly  upon  it,  and  are  of  quite  a  scar- 
let colour." 

Father. — Ha,  ha!  this  too  will  perhaps  turn  out  a  new 
discovery,  and  an  additional  source  of  usefulness.  Let  me 
look  at  your  fig;  I  will  wager  that  it  is  the  insect  called  the 
cochineal. 

Jack. — The  cochineal !  what  a  droll  name !  What  is  the 
cochineal,  father? 

Father. — It   is  an  insect  of  the  kind  called  auckerSy  or 

a 


186  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON 

kermes.  He  feeds  upon  the  Indian  fig,  which,  no  doubt,  is 
the  cause  of  his  beautiful  colour,  so  much  esteemed  in  dye- 
ing; for  nothing  else  produces  so  fine  a  scarlet.  In  Ameri- 
ca, they  stretch  pieces  of  linen  under  the  branches,  and  then 
shake  the  tree;  and  when  the  insects  have  fallen  in  great 
numbers,  the  ends  of  the  linen  are  folded  together  to  en- 
close them;  the  insects  are  sprinkled  with  vinegar  or  cold 
water,  and  then  dried,  and  sent  to  Europe,  where  a  high 
price  is  paid  for  them.  But  I  have  not  yet  mentioned  a  still 
superior  usefulness,  peculiar  to  the  Indian  fig-tree: — what  if 
I  should  assert  that  it  can  be  used  as  a  protection  to  man? 

Fritz. — As  a  protection  to  man!  Why,  how  can  that  be, 
father  ? 

Father. — It  is  well  adapted  for  enclosing  the  dwellings  of 
man;  for  you  see,  that  besides  the  prickles,  there  is  a  large 
thorn  at  each  of  the  knots  in  the  stalk,  well  calculated  for 
repelling  the  attacks  of  animals  or  men.  This,  then,  you 
see,  is  a  third  usefulness  the  Indian  fig-tree  can  boast,  and 
of  which  I  was  not  at  first  aware.  You  must  perceive  of 
what  importance  these  enclosures  are;  and  the  rather,  as 
they  are  made  with  so  little  trouble;  for  if  you  plant  only 
one  of  its  leaves  in  the  ground,  it  immediately  takes  root, 
and  grows  with  astonishing  rapidity. 

Jack,  the  thoughtless,  here  cried  out,  that  with  the  assis- 
tance of  a  knife,  or  even  a  stick,  it  would  be  easy  to  get 
over  such  a  hedge;  and  he  began  to  cut  down  with  his 
clasp-knife  a  pretty  large  plant,  striking  to  right  and  left 
with  all  his  might,  till  one  of  the  divided  leaves  fell  with 
such  violence  on  his  leg,  that  the  thorns  struck  into  the  flesh, 
and  Jack  roared  out  piteously,  and  quickly  sat  down  to 
draw  them  out.  I  could  not,  as  I  assisted  him,  refrain  from 
laughing  a  little  at  his  adventure.     I  observed  to  him,  how 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  187 

difficult  it  must  be  for  savages,  who  wear  no  clothes,  to  force 
such  a  barrier  as  they  formed;  and  for  this  once,  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  convincing  him. 

Ernest. — Ah,  father,  do  let  us  make  a  hedge  of  these 
plants  round  our  tree;  we  shall  then  have  no  further  occa' 
sion  for  fires  to  preserve  us  from  wild  beasts,  or  even  from 
the  savages,  who  may  arrive  in  their  canoes,  as  they  did  on 
Robinson  Crusoe's  Island. 

Fritz. — And  we  could,  then,  easily  gather  the  cochineal, 
and  try  to  make  the  same  beautiful  scarlet  colour. 

Father. — We  shall  have  time  enough  for  many  things,  my 
dear  children;  but  for  the  present,  it  is  sufficient  to  prove  to 
you,  that  God  has  not  made  anything  to  be  wholly  useless; 
and  that  it  is  the  duty  of  man,  on  whom  he  has  bestowed  the 
gifts  of  wisdom  and  intelligence,  to  employ  those  faculties 
in  discovering  the  utility  of  the  different  productions  he  has 
allowed  to  exist. 

Jack. — For  my  part,  I  have  done  with  the  Indian  fig-tree, 
its  fruit,  its  cochineal,  and  its  ugly  thorns,  and  I  will  never 
go  near  it  again. 

Father. — If  the  plant  could  speak,  it  would  most  likely 
say,  That  little  boy  shall  not  come  near  me  any  more. 
Without  any  reason,  or  any  necessity,  but  purely  out  of 
contradiction  to  his  father,  he  attacks  and  destroys  me;  me, 
who  would  have  done  him  service,  if  he  would  but  have 
treated  me  with  kindness,  and  have  been  careful  in  coming 
near  me. — And  now,  Jack,  if  your  leg  is  still  painful,  apply 
a  leaf  of  the  karata  to  it,  for  I  recollect  that  the  plant  pos- 
sesses the  property  of  curing  wounds.  He  accordingly' 
took  my  advice,  and  in  a  few  minutes  was  able  to  join  us  on 
our  road  to  Tent-House. 

"  Now  then,"  said  Ernest,  "  I  have  had  an  opportunity 


188  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

of  learning  the  valuable  properties  of  the  karata  tree,  and  of 
the  Indian  fig-tree :  but  I  wish  I  could  also  be  informed  what 
those  tall  plants  are  which  look  like  sticks  covered  with 
thorns,  that  I  perceive  every  where  about  us;  I  see  neither 
fruit  nor  insects  on  them:  of  what  use,  then,  father,  do  you 
think  they  can  be?" 

Father. — It  is  not  in  my  power  to  explain  to  you  the  uses 
of  all  the  plants  in  the  world;  I  presume  that  many  exist 
which  have  no  other  than  that  of  contributing  to  the  suste- 
nance of  different  kinds  of  animals;  and,  as  I  have  already 
told  you,  it  is  for  man,  by  his  superior  intelligence,  to  dis- 
cover those  that  can  be  applied  to  his  own  use.  Many 
possess  medicinal  qualities  of  which  I  am  ignorant,  and  which 
will  become  better  known  as  the  world  advances  in  age. 
The  plant  you  speak  of  is  perhaps  the  prickly  candle,, 
described  by  Bruce,  in  his  Travels  to  Abyssinia,  and  of 
which  he  gives  a  drawing;  the  only  difference  that  I  per- 
ceive being  the  size.  "They  serve,"  says  he,  "for  food 
to  the  elephant  and  the  rhinoceros;  the  first  with  his  strong 
teeth,  or  his  trunk,  and  the  latter  with  his  horn,  lays  hold 
of  this  seeming  stick,  and  rips  it  up  from  one  end  to  the 
other;  they  then  devour  the  pith,  and  sometimes  the  rind." 

Ernest.- — The  palate  of  these  animals  must  surely  be  made 
of  iron,  to  be  able  to  chew  such  a  thorny  substance  without 
injury. 

Fritz. — Why  so?  Camels  and  asses  are  very  fond  of 
thistles,  and  appear  to  digest  them  extremely  well.  It  is 
probable,  therefore,  that  the  stomach  of  these  animals  is  so 
formed,  that  ihese  prickly  substances  occasion  in  it  only  an 
agreeable  excitation,  favourable  to  their  appetite  and  their 
digestion. 

Father. — Your  idea  is  not  a  bad  one;  and  if  it  be  not 
true,  it  is  at  least  probable. 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  189 

Fritz. — Will  you  tell  me,  father,  the  precise  difference 
between  trite  and  py^obablel 

Father. — Your  question  is  one  of  those  which  have  occu- 
pied the  attention  of  philosophers  for  countless  years,  and 
would  be  too  tedious  for  discussion  at  this  moment;  I  will, 
however,  endeavour  to  make  my  answer  such,  as  to  be  of 
use  to  you,  in  the  science  of  logic,  or  the  art  of  reasoning. 
Let  us  see  if  you  will  understand  it — What  we  call  true,  is 
that  which  cannot  in  any  way  be  contradicted,  and  which 
exactly  agrees,  in  every  point,  with  the  idea  we  conceive  of 
a  certain  object,  or  as  it  really  exists  before  our  eyes:  for 
example,  when  I  make  an  impression  with  my  seal  on  some 
warm  wax,  it  is  absolutely  true  that  the  figure  impressed  on 
the  \vax,  is  the  same  as  that  on  the  seal.  A  thing  is  proba- 
ble, when  we  have  a  variety  of  motives  for  believing  it  true, 
without,  however,  being  able  to  bring  any  proof.  Again, 
we  call  false,  that  which  is  in  positive  contradiction  to  all 
our  notions,  our  reason,  and  our  experience.  Is  it  true,  pro- 
bable, or  false,  that  a  man  can  fly  up  into  the  air? 

All. r— It  is  false,  absolutely  false. 

Father. — How  so? 

Jack. — Because  the  thing  is  impossible. 

Father. — Very  well,  my  young  philosopher,  and  why  is 
the  thing  impossible  ? 

Jack.— Because  it  is  not  possible. 

father. — Ha,  ha,  ha!  here  is  a  pretty  round  of  possible 
and  impossible.  It  is  false  because  no  such  thing  can  be  done, 
and  no  such  thing  can  be  done,  because  it  is  not  possible. 
Presently  you  will  tell  me  that  it  is  impossible  because  it  is 
false.  Try  again,  my  lads,  we  must  have  some  better  rea- 
sons.    What  say  you,  Ernest? 

Ernest. — I  say,  that  the  thing  cannot  be  done,  bee-use  it 


190  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

is  not  in  the  nature  Of  man  to  fly;  that  haying  no  wings,  he 
is  not  formed  for  flying. 

Father. — Well,  but  if  some  one  should  assert,  that  a  man 
is  able  to  make  a  machine,  by  the  assistance  of  which  he 
can  raise  and  support  himself  in  the  air  without  wings,  and 
without  the  machine  resting  upon  any  thing;  would  this  be 
probable  or  improbable"?     What  think  you  Fritz? 

Fritz. — I  think  I  should  have  said  improbable,  if  I  had  not 
known  that  people  have  accomplished  what  you  describe, 
by  the  invention  of  balloons. 

Father. — And  why  should  you  have  thought  it  improba- 
ble! 

Fritz. — Because  man  is,  in  his  nature,  heavier  than  the 
air;  and  I  should  have  supposed,  that  a  machine  of  what- 
ever kind,  instead  of  diminishing,  would  only  add  to  his 
weight.      -  ' 

Father. — Very  well  reasoned.  But  you  would  be  told 
that  this  machine  is  of  large  dimensions,  and  composed  of  a 
close,  light  kind  of  silk,  and  that  it  is  filled  with  air  chemi- 
cally prepared,  which  being  much  lighter  than  atmospheric 
air,  tends  perpetually  to  ascend,  and  supports  the  man  in 
the  air,  as  bladders  support  you  upon  the  water.  Do  you 
understand  all  this,  my  boy?  and  what  have  you  to  say  in 
answer  ? 

Fritz. — Yes,  father,  I  understand  it;  and  I  perceive  how 
it  might  be  probable,  that  since  man  has  discovered  a  means 
to  be  sustained  upon  water,  he  might  also  find  the  means  fr^ 
to  raise  and  sustain  himself  in  the  air. 

Father. — And  when  a  multitude  of  persons  of  veracity, 
and  of  different  ages,  shall  declare  that  with  their  own  eyes 
they  saw  a  balloon,  to  which  a  parachute  was  fastened  filled 
with  men,  and  that  all  mounted  in  the  air  together,  and  dis- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  19  i 

appeared  above  the  clouds;  should  you  still  maintain  that  it 
is  false  that  a  man  can  fly  ? 

All. — No,  to  be  sure,  we  should  say  that  it  is  quite  true 
that  he  can  iiy. 

Father. — And  yet  you  all  said,  but  a  minute  ago,  that  it 
was  absolutely  false. 

Fritz. — Ah!  but" we  said  that,  father,  of  a  man  by  himself, 
independently  of  any  machine  he  might  construct;  for  though 
nature  has  refused  him  wings,  she  has  not  failed  to  bestow 
on  him  an  inventive  mind,  which  more  than  compensates  for 
til  at  deficiency. 

Father. — Your  observation  is  perfectly  just,  and  I  hope 
you  will  not  fail  to  profit  by  it.  With  the  aid  of  his  intelli- 
gence, and  his  reason,  there  is  scarcely  any  thing  which 
man  cannot  attain  to.  But  to  return  to  our  example:  you 
will  find  in  it  the  definition  of  the  words  which  you  ask  me 
about:  it  is  false,  that  a  man  of  himself  can  fly;  it  is  proba- 
ble, that  by  the  aid  of  a  machine  of  his  own  invention  he_ 
may  be  enabled  to  mount  and  sustain  himself  in  the  air;  and 
it  is  also  absolutely  true,  that  this  has  been  effected  by  man, 
though  without  his  having  yet  found  a  certain  "means  of 
guiding  these  factitious  wings;  a  defect  which,  in  a  great 
measure,  renders  his  discovery  useless. 

At  this  point  of  our  discourse,  we  reached  Jackall's  Riv- 
er, which  we  crossed,  stepping  with  great  care  from  stone 
to  stone,  and  shortly  arrived  at  our  old  habitation,  where  we 
found  every  thing  as  we  had  left  it;  and  each  went  in  pur- 
suit of  what  he  intended  to  take  away.  Fritz  loaded  him- 
self with  powder  and  shot:  I  and  my  wife  and  Francis  em- 
ployed ourselves  in  filling  our  pot  with  butter,  the  carrying 
of  which  on  our  return  it  was  agreed  was  to  fall  on  me.  Er- 
nest and  Jack  looked  about  for  the  geese  and  ducks;  but 


192  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

as  they  were  become  somewhat  savage,  the  boys  could  not 
succeed  in  catching  one  of  them.  The  idea  then  occurred 
to  Ernest,  of  taking  a  small  bit  of  cheese,  and  tying  it  to  the 
end  of  a  piece  of  string,  and  holding  it  to  float  in  the  water. 
The  voracious  animals  hastened  eagerly  to  seize  it.  In  this 
way,  Ernest  drew  them  towards  him,  one  by  one,  with  the 
cheese  in  its  mouth,  till  he  had  caught  the  whole:  each  bird 
was  then  tied  in  a  pocket  handkerchief,  leaving  tbe  head  at 
liberty,  and  fastened  one  to  each  game-bag,  so  that  all  had 
a  share  in  carrying  them. 

We  had  a  thought  of  taking  back  a  provision  of  «alt; 
but  the  sacks  being  occupied  with  potatoes,  we  could  only 
throw  a  small  quantity  loose  into  one  of  them,  to  lie  between 
the  potatoes:  in  this  way  we  secured  a  tolerable  supply. 

We  now  set  out  loaded  on  our  return.  The  ducks  and 
geese,  with  their  heads  and  necks  stretching  out  at  our 
shoulders,  cackling  with  all  their  might,  gave  us  a  truly  sin- 
gular and  ludicrous  appearance,  and  we  could  not  help 
laughing  immoderately  as  we  passed  the  bridge,  one  after 
another,  accoutred  in  so  strange  a  fashion.  Our  mutual . 
jokes,  and  the  general  good  humour  which  prevailed,  served 
to  shorten  the  length  of  the  walk,  and  none  complained  of 
fatigue,  till  seated  under  our  tree  at  Falcon's  Stream.  My 
wife  now  prepared  to  console  us^  by  putting  some  of  the 
potatoes  which  we  so  eagerly  desired  to  taste,  immediately 
on  the  fire.  She  next  milked  the  cow  and  the  goat,  and 
gave  us  a  draught  of  their  warm  milk.  The  kind  creature-, 
fatigued  at  least  as  much  as  any  of  us,  made  no  attempt  to 
rest  herself,  till  she  had  provided  us  with  all  she  had  to  give 
for  our  refreshment.  Having  dined  heartily  on  our  potatoes, 
we  concluded  the  day  with  evening-prayers,  and  then  joy- 
fully climbed  our  ladder  to  seek  the  blessing  of  repose  in 
our  aerial  castle. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  193 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Hopes   of  a  Sledge — Some  short   Lessons  in  useful   Things. 

I  had  observed  along  the  shore  many  pieces  of  wood,  of 
which  I  thought  I  could  make  a  kind  of  conveyance  for  our 
cask  of  butter  and  other  provisions  from  Tent-House  to 
Falcon's  Stream,  and  had  secretly  determined  to  go  early 
the  next  morning,  before  my  family  should  be  awake,  to  the 
spot.  I  had  fixed  upon  Ernest  for  my  assistant,  thinking 
that  his  indolent  temper  required  to  be  stimulated  to  exer- 
tion. I  made  him  feel  as  a  great  favour  the  preference  I 
gave  him,  and  he  promised  to  be  ready  at  a  very  early  hour. 
I  was  also  desirous  to  leave  Fritz  with  the  family,  as,  being 
the  tallest  and  strongest,  he  was  more  able  to  afford 
protection. 

At  the  first  dawn  of  morning  I  quietly  awoke  Ernest.  He 
got  up,  and  we  descended  the  ladder  without  being  perceiv- 
ed by  the  rest,  who  continued  to  sleep  soundly.  We  roused 
the  ass,  and  I  made  him  draw  some  large  branches  of  a 
tree,  which  I  wranted  for  my  undertaking. 

We  were  not  long  in  finding  the  pieces  of  wood,  and  set 
to  work  to  cut  them  the  proper  length,  and  we  then  laid 
them  cioss-ways  on  the  branches,  which  we  thus  converted 
into  a  kind  of  vehicle.  We  added  to  the  load  a  little  chest, 
which  we  found  half  buried  in  the  sands,  quite  close  to  the 
waves,  and  then  we  set  out  on  our  return  to  Falcon's  Stream. 
When  we  reached  our  abode,  the  chest  we  had  brought  was 


194  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

soon  opened  by  a  strong  hatchet,  for  all  were  eager  to  see 
what  was  within.  It  contained  only  some  sailors'  dresses 
and  some  linen:   and  both  were  wet  with  the  sea. 

We  then  sat  down  tranquilly  to  breakfast;  and  I  next  in- 
spected the  booty  of  the  young  sportsmen,  who  had  shot,  in 
all,  no  less  than  fifty  ortolans  and  thrushes,  and  had  used  so 
large  a  quantity  of  powder  and  shot,  that  when  they  were 
about  to  resume  their  sport,  my  wife  and  I  stopped  them,  re- 
commending a  more  frugal  use  of  those  valuable  materials. 
I  taught  them  how  to  make  -some  snares,  to  be  suspended 
from  the  branches  of  the  fig-tree,  and  advised  them  to  use 
the  thread  of  the  karata,  which  is  as  strong  as  horse-hair,  for 
the  purpose.  What  is  new  always  amuses  young  persons, 
and  the  boys  accordingly  took  a  great  fancy  to  this  mode  of 
sporting.  Jack  succeeded  in  his  very  first  attempt;  I  left 
Francis  to  assist  him,  and  took  Fritz  and  Ernest  to  help  me 
in  making  the  new  carriage. 

As  we  were  hard  at  work,  a  prodigious  clatter  was  heard 
among  the  fowls;  the  cock  crowed  louder  than  the  rest,  and 
the  hens  ran  to  and  fro,  as  if  pursued.  "I  wonder  what  is 
the  matter  with  the  creatures,"  cried  my  wife,  rising;  "  ev- 
ery day  I  hear  the  hens  clucking  as  if  they  had  been  laying 
eggs."  At  this  moment  Ernest  happened  to  look  at  the 
monkey,  and  remarked  that  he  fixed  his  piercing  eyes  on 
the  hens;  and  when  he  saw  my  wife  approaching,  driving 
the  hens  before  her,  he  jumped  quickly  into  a  hollow  place 
under  one  of  the  roots  of  the  tree,  and  hid  himself.  Ernest 
was  at  the  place  as  soon  as  he,  and  caught  him  with  a  new- 
laid  egg  in  his  paw,  which  he  was  going  to  conceal.  The 
monkey  sprang  away  to  another  hole,  and  Ernest  followed; 
here  also  he  found  some  eggs,  and  brought  them  in  his  hat 
to  his  mother,  who  received  them  with  great  pleasure.     The 


THE    SWISS    FAMi^Y    ROBINSON.  195 

monkey,  greedy  of  such  food,  had  seized  the  eggs  as  soon 
as  the  hens  had  laid  them.  We  inflicted  no  other  punish- 
ment upon  him  for  this  little  piece  of  knavery,  than  that  of 
tying  him  up  when  the  hens  were  about  to  lay.  My  wife 
expressed  her  joy  at  this  new  acquisition,  and  soon  collected 
a  great  number  of  eggs,  and  we  waited  with  impatience  for 
the  time  when  the  hens  would  sit,  in  the  hope  of  seeing 
their  species  multiplied. 

In  the  meanwhile,  Jack  had  got  up  into  the  tree,  and  had 
suspended  some  of  the  snares  to  the  branches,  to  catch  the 
little  devourers  of  our  figs;  he  came  down  again  to  bring  us 
the  acceptable  intelligence,  that  our  pigeons  had  made  a  sort 
ofnest  there  of  some  dry  grass,  and  that  it  already  contained 
several  eggs.  I  therefore  forbade  the  boys  from  firing 
any  more  in  the  tree,  for  fear  of  alarming  or  wounding  these 
gentle  creatures.  I  also  directed  that  the  snares  should 
be  frequently  examined,  to  see  that  the  pigeons  were  not 
caught  in  them,  as  they  might  be  strangled  in  their  efforts 
to  get  loose.  My  sons  had  all  murmured  a  little  at  my  pro- 
hibition of  the  gunpowder;  and  little  Francis  with  his  in- 
nocent face  came  running  to  tell  me,  that  he  was  going  to 
ask  his  brother  to  help  him  to  sow  some  gunpowder,  that 
they  might  have  plenty.  We  all  laughed  heartily  at  the 
idea,  and  Professor  Ernest  did  not  overlook  the  occasion  to 
display  his  science. 

During  these  arrangements,  the  boys  and  I  had  been 
busily  employed:  our  work  was  completed.  Two  bent  pieces 
of  wood,  the  segments  of  a  circle,  which  I  fixed  in  their 
places  by  a  straight  piece  of  wood  placed  across,  and  firmly 
fixed  to  the  bent  pieces  in  the  middle,  and  at  the  rear,  for- 
med the  outline  of  my  machine.  I  then  fastened  two  ropes 
in  front,  and  here  was  a  sledge  as  perfect  as  could  be  de- 


196  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

sired.  As  I  had  not  raised  my  eyes  from  my  work,  I  did 
not  know  what  my  wife  and  the  two  youngest  boys  had  been 
about.  On  looking  up,  I  perceived  that  they  had  been  strip- 
ping off  the  feacners  from  a  quantity  of  birds  which  the  boys 
had  killed,  and  that  they  afterwards  spitted  them  on  an  offi- 
cer's sword,  which  Fritz  had  fancied  and  brought  from  the 
ship,  and  which  my  wife  had  turned  into  this  useful  kitchen 
utensil.  I  approved  of  the  idea;  but  I  blamed  her  profusion, 
in  dressing  more  birds  at  once  than  we  could  eat.  She  re- 
minded me,  that  I  had  myself  advised  her  to  half  roast  the 
birds  before  putting  them  into  the  butter,  to  be  preserved 
for  future  use.  She  was  in  hopes,  she  said,  that  as  I  had 
now  a  sledge,  I  should  not  fail  of  going  to  Tent-House  after 
dinner,  to  fetch  tha  cask  of  butter,  and  in  the  meanwhile, 
she  was  endeavouring  to  be  ready  with  the  birds.  I  had  no 
objection  to  this,  and  determined  on  going  to  Tent-House 
the  same  day,  requesting  my  wife  to  hasten  the  dinner  for 
that  purpose.  She  replied,  that  this  was  already  her  inten- 
tion, as  she  also  had  a  little  project  in  her  head,  which  I 
should  be  informed  of  at  my  return.  I,  for  my  part,  had 
one  too,  which  was  to  refresh  myself  after  the  heat  and  fa- 
tigue of  my  laborious  occupations,  by  a  plunge  into  the  sea. 
I  wished  that  Ernest,  who  was  to  accompany  me,  should 
bathe  also ;  while  Fritz  was  to  remain  at  home  for  the  pro- 
.ection  of  the  family. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  197 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  Bathing,  a  Fishing,  the  jumping  Hare,  and  a  Masquerade, 

At  the  moment  of  departure,  Fritz  presented  his  brother 
and  myself  with  a  case  of  his  own  workmanship,  which  we 
stuck  into  our  belts,  and  which,  in  reality,  were  well  con- 
trived for  holding  spoons,  and  knives  and  forks,  while  room 
was  left  in  the  middle  for  a  little  hatchet.  I  praised  Fritz 
for  having  thus  brought  his  idea  to  perfection,  and  for  con- 
triving to  make  two  cases  with  his  skin  instead  of  one. 

.  We  had  harnessed  the  ass  and  the  cow  to  our  sledge;  we 
each  took  a  piece  of  bamboo-cane  in  hand,  to  serve  as  a 
whip;  and  resting  our  guns  upon  our  shoulders,  began  our 
journey.  Flora  was  to  accompany  us,  and  Turk  to  remain 
behind.  We  bade  adieu  to  our  companions,  and  put  our 
animals  in  motion.  We  took  the  road  by  the  sea-shore, 
where  the  sands  afforded  better  travelling  for  our  vehicle, 
than  the  thick  wild  grass.  We  reached  Family  Bridge,  on 
Jackall's  River,  and  arrived  at  Tent-House  without  either 
obstacle  or  adventure,  and  unharnessed  the  animals  to  let 
them  graze,  while  we  set  to  work  to  load  the  sledge  with 
the  cask  of  butter,  the  cask  of  cheese,  a  small  barrel  of  gun- 
powder, different  instruments,  some  ball,  and  some  shot. 
These  exertions  had  so  occupied  our  thoughts,  that  it  was  late 
when  we  first  observed  that  our  animals,  attracted  by  the  ex- 
cellent quality  of  the  grass  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  had 
repassed  the  bridge,  and  wandered  so  far  as  to  be  out  of  sight. 


198  THE    SWISS    FAMILY  ROBINSON. 

I  was  in  hopes  they  would  be  easily  found,  and  directed  Er- 
nest to  go  with  Flora  and  bring  them  back,  intending  in  the 
meantime  to  look  for  a  convenient  place,  on  the  other  side  of 
Tent-House,  to  bathe  in.  In  a  short  time  I  found  myself 
at  the  extremity  of  Providence  Bay,  which  ended,  as  I  now 
perceived,  in  a  marsh,  producing  some  fine  bulrushes;  and 
further  on,  a  chain  of  steep  rocks,  advancing  somewhat  into 
the  sea,  and  forming  a  kind  of  creek,  as  if  expressly  contri- 
ved for  bathing.  The  juttings  of  the  rock  even  seemed  like 
little  cabinets,  for  separate  accommodation.  Enchanted  with 
this  discovery,  I  called  out  to  Ernest  to  come  and  join  me, 
and  in  the  meantime  amused  myself  with  cutting  some  of  the 
rushes,  and  imagining  what  use  I  could  apply  them  to. 

I  desired  him  to  fill  a  small  bag  with  some  of  the  salt  he 
had  formerly  observed  here,  and  then  to  empty  it  into  the 
large  one  for  the  ass  to  carry;  and  to  take  care  to  fill  equal- 
ly on  each  side.  "  During  this  time,  I  will  take  the  refresh- 
ment of  bathing;  and  then  it  will  be  your  turn  to  bathe,  and 
mine  to  take  care  of  the  animals." 

I  returned  to  the  rocks,  and  was  not  disappointed  in  my 
expectation  of  an  enjoyment  the  most  delicious;  but  I  did 
not  stay  long,  fearing  my  boy  might  be  impatient  for  his 
share  of  so  new  a  pleasure.  When  I  had  dressed  myself,  I 
returned  to  the  place  to  see  if  his  work  had  advanced:  pre- 
sently 1  heard  his  voice  calling  out,  "Father,  father,  a  fish! 
a  fish  of  monstrous  size!  Run  quickly,  father,  I  can  hardly 
hold  him!  he  is  eating  up  the  string  of  my  line!"  I  ran  to 
the  place  from  which  the  voice  proceeded,  and  found  Ernest 
lying  along  the  ground  on  his  face,  upon  the  extremity  of  a 
point  of  land,  and  pulling  in  his  line,  to  which  a  large  fish 
was  hanging,  and  struggling  to  get  loose.  I  ran  hastily  and 
snatched  the  rod  out  of  his  hand,  for  I  feared  the  weight  and 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  199 

activity  of  the  fish  might  pull  him  into  the  water.  I  gave 
the  line  length,  to  calm  the  fish,  and  then  contrived  to  draw 
him  gently  along,  into  a  shallow,  from  which  he  could  no 
longer  escape,  and  thus  he  was  effectually  secured.  We  ex- 
amined him  thoroughly,  and  he  appeared  to  weigh  not  less 
than  fifteen  pounds;  so  that  our  capture  was  magnificent,  and 
would  afford  the  greatest  pleasure  to  our  good  steward  of 
provisions  at  Falcon's  Stream.  "  You  have  now  really 
laboured,"  said  I  to  Ernest,  "  not  only  with  your  head,  but 
with  your  whole  body;  and  I  would  advise  you  to  wipe  the 
perspiration  from  your  face,  and  keep  a  little  quiet  before  you 
venture  into  the  water.  You  have  procured  us  a  dish  of 
great  excellence,  which  will  last  for  several  days,  and  have 
conducted  yourself  like  a  true  cavalier,  without  fear  and  with- 
out reproach." 

"  It  was  at  least  fortunate,"  observed  he  in  a  modest  tone, 
"  that  I  thought  of  bringing  my  fishing-rod." 

Father. — Certainly  it  was.  But  tell  me  how  you  came  to 
see  this  large  fish,  and  what  made  you  think  you  could 
catch  it? 

Ernest. — I  used  to  remark  great  quantities  of  fish  in  the 
water,  just  hereabout,  and  this  made  me  determine  to  bring 
my  fishing-tackle  with  me.  In  my  way  to  the  salt,  I  per- 
ceived a  great  number  of  little  crabs,  upon  which  fishes 
feed,  near  the  water's  brink;  I  thought  I  would  try  to  bait 
my  hook  with  one  of  them;  so  I  hastened  my  work,  and 
came  to  this  spot,  where  I  caught  only  a  dozen  little  fish, 
which  are  there  in  my  handkerchief;  but  I  remarked,  that 
they  were  chased  in  the  water  by  fishes  of  larger  size.  This 
gave  me  the  idea  of  baiting  my  hook  with  one  of  the  small 
ones;  but  the  hook  was  too  small,  and  my  rod  too  weak. 
I  then  took  one  of  the  finest  of  the  bulrushes  you  had  just 


200       -  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

gathered,  and  put  a  larger  hook  to  my  line,  and  in  a  short 
time  the  large  fish  you  see  there  seized  upon  the  bait,  and 
paid  his  life  for  his  voracity.  However,  I  must  confess, 
that  if  you  had  not  come  to  my  assistance,  I  must  either 
have  let  go  my  line,  or  have  been  dragged  into  the  water; 
for  the  fish  was  stronger  than  I. 

We  now  examined  the  smaller  fishes,  which  were  mostly 
trout  and  herrings,  while  I  felt  certain  that  the  large  one  was 
a  salmon.  I  cut  them  all  open,  and  rubbed  them  in  the  in-, 
side  with  salt,  that  they  might  not  be  injured  by  the  heaf. 
While  I  was  thus  employed,  Ernest  went  to  the  rocks  and 
bathed,  and  I  had  time  to  fill  some  more  bags  with  salt,  be- 
fore his  return.  We  then  harnessed  and  loaded  our  ani- 
mals, and  then  resumed  the  road  to  Falcon's  Stream. 

When  we  had  proceeded  about  halfway,  Flora,  who  was 
before  us,  suddenly  sprang  off,  and  by  her  barking  gave 
notice  that  she  scented  some  game.  We  soon  after  saw  her 
pursuing  an  animal,  which  seemed  endeavouring  to  escape, 
and  made  the  most  extraordinary  jumps  imaginable.  The 
dog  continuing  to  follow,  the  creature,  in  trying  to  avoid 
him,  passed  within  gun-shot  of  the  place  where  I  stood.  I 
fired,  but  its  flight  was  so  rapid,  that  I  did  not  hit.  Ernest, 
who  was  at  a  small  distance  behind,  hearing  the  report  of 
my  gun,  prepared  his  own,  and  fired  it  off  at  the  instant  the 
singular  animal  was  passing  near  him,  seeking  to  hide  itself 
among  the  tall  herbage  just  by:  he  had  fired  so  skilfully, 
that  the  animal  fell  dead  at  the  same  instant.  I  ran  with 
extreme  curiosity  to  ascertain  what  kind  of  quadruped  it 
might  be.  It  was  as  large  as  a  sheep,  with  the  tail  resem- 
bling that  of  a  tiger;  both  its  snout  and  hair  were  like  those 
of  a  mouse,  and  its  teeth  were  like  a  hare's,  but  much  larger; 
the  fore  legs  resembled  those  of  the  squirrel,  and  were  ex- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  201 

tremely  short;  but  to  make  up  for  this,  its  hind  legs  were  as 
long  as  a  pair  of  stilts,  and  of  a  form  strikingly  singular. 
We  examined  the  creature  a  long  time  in  silence;  I  could 
not  be  sure  that  I  had  ever  seen  an  engraving  or  description 
of  it  in  any  natural  history,  or  book  of  travels.  Ernest  at 
length,  clapping  his  hands  together,  joyously  exclaimed, 
"And  have  I  really  killed  this  wonderful  animal?  What 
will  my  mother  and  my  brothers  say  ?  How  astonished  they 
will  be!  a*hd  how  fortunate  I  am  in  securing  so  fine  a  prize! 
What  do  you  think  is  its  name,  father?  I  would  give  all 
the  world  to  know." 

Father. — And  so  would  I,  my  boy;  but  I  am  as  ignorant 
as  you.  One  thing,  however,  is  certain,  that  this  is  your 
lucky  day.  Let  us  again  examine  this  interesting  stranger, 
that  we  may  be  certain  to  what  family  of  quadrupeds  it  be- 
longs: this  will  perhaps  throw  a  light  upon  its  name. 

Ernest. — I  think  it  can  hardly  be  named  a  quadruped; 
for  the  little  fore  legs  look  much  more  like  hands,  as  is  the 
case  with  monkeys. 

Father. — They  are  notwithstanding  legs,  I  can  assure  you. 
L°t  us  look  for  its  name  among  the  animals  who  give  suck; 
on  this  point  we  cannot  be  mistaken.  Now  let  us  examine 
its  teeth. 

Ernest. — Here  are  the  four  incisory  teeth,  like  the  squir- 
rel. 

Father. — Thus  we  see  that  it  belongs  to  the  order  of  Nib- 
blers.  Now  let  us  look  for  some  names  of  animals  of  this 
kind. 

Ernest. — Besides  squirrels,  I  recollect  only  mice,  mar- 
mots, hares,  beavers,  porcupines,  and  jumpers. 

Father. — Jumpers!  That  short  word  furnishes  the  neces- 
sary clue ;   the  animal  is  completely  formed  like  the  gerboa 


202  THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

or  jumping  hare,  except  that  it  is  twice  the  size  of  those  of 

which  I  have  read  a  description  . Wait  a  moment 

- — an  idea  strikes  me:  I  will  wager  that  our  animal  is  one  of 
the  large  jumpers,  called  kangaroo;  it  belongs  properly  to 
the  genus  Uidelphis  or  Philander;  because  the  female,  who 
never  bears  more  than  one  young  one,  carries  it  in  a  kind 
of  purse  placed  between  her  hind  legs.  To  the  best  of  my 
knowledge,  this  animal  has  never  been  seen  but  on  the  coast, 
of  New  Holland,  where  it  was  first  observed  by  the  cele- 
brated navigator  Captain  Cook.  You  may  then  be  highly 
flattered  with  your  adventure  of  killing  an  animal  at  once 
so  rare  and  so  remarkable.  But  now  let  us  see  how  we  shall 
manage  to  drag  him  to  the  sledge.  Ernest  requested  that 
I  would  rather  assist  him  to  carry  it,  as  he  was  afraid  of 
spoiling  its  beautiful  mouse-coloured  skin  by  dragging  it 
on  the  ground.  I  therefore  tied  the  fore  legs  of  the  kanga- 
roo together;  and,  by  means  of  two  canes,  we  with  consi- 
derable trouble  contrived  to  carry  it  to  the  sledge,  upon 
which  it  was  securely  fastened. 

Having  now  nothing  more  to  detain  us,  we  continued  our 
road  towards  Falcon's  Stream,  conversing  on  the  subject  of 
natural  history,  and  on  the  necessity  of  studying  it  in  our 
youth,  that  we  might  learn  to  class  plants  and  animals  ac- 
cording to  their  characteristic  marks;  and  we  observed,  that 
to  such  a  knowledge  as  this  it  was  owing  that  we  had  recog- 
nised the  kangaroo.  Ernest  entreated  me  to  tell  him  all  I 
knew  about  the  animal.  "It  is,"  said  I,  "a  most  singular 
kind  of  creature.  Its  fore  legs,  as  you  see,  have  scarcely 
the  third  part  of  the  length  of  the  hind  ones,  and  the  most  it 
can  do,  is  to  make  them  serve  the  purpose  of  walking;  but 
the  hind  legs  enable  it  to  make  prodigious  jumps,  the  same 
as  in  the  flea  and  the  grashopper.     The  food  of  the  kan- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  203 

garoo  consists  of  herbs  and  roots,  which  they  dig  up  very 
skilfully  with  their  fore  legs.  They  place  themselves  upon 
their  hind  legs,  which  are  doubled  under  them,  as  if  on  a 
chair,  and  by  this  means  are  able  to  look  above  even  the 
tall  kinds  of  grass;  they  rest  too  upon  their  tail,  which  is 
exceedingly  strong,  and  is  also  of  great  use  to  them  in  jump- 
ing, by  assisting  the  spring  from  the  ground.  It  is  said  that 
the  kangaroo,  if  deprived  of  its  tail,  would  scarcely  be  able 
to  jump  at  all." 

We  at  length  arrived  happily,  though  somewhat  late,  at 
Falcon's  Stream,  having  heard  from  a  great  distance  the 
salutations  of  our  family.  Our  companions  all  ran  to  meet 
us:  but  it  was  now,  on  seeing  the  ludicrous  style  of  the 
dress  of  the  three  boys,  our  turn  for  immoderate  fits  of 
laughter:  one  had  on  a  sailor's  shirt,  which  trained  round 
him  like  the  robe  of  a  spectre;  another  was  buried  in  a 
pair  of  pantaloons,  which  were  fastened  round  his  neck,  and 
reached  to  the  ground;  and  the  third  had  a  long  waistcoat, 
which  came  down  to  the  insteg^and  gave  him  the  exact 
form  of  a  travelling  portmanteau.  They  all  tried  to  jump 
about,  but  finding  this  impossible,  from  the  length  of  their 
garments,  they  next  resolved  to  carry  off  the  whole  with  an 
air,  by  strutting  slowly  to  and  fro,  in  the  manner  of  a  great 
personage  in  a  theatre.  After  some  hearty  laughing,  I  in- 
quired of  my  wife  what  could  be  the  cause  of  this  masquer- 
ade, and  whether  she  had  assisted  them  in  attempting  to  act 
a  comedy  for  our  amusement.  She  disclosed  the  mystery 
by  informing  me,  that  her  three  boys  had  also  been  bathing, 
and  that,  while  thus  engaged,  she  had  washed  all  their 
clothes;  but  as  they  had  not  dried  so  soon  as  she  expected, 
her  little  rioters  had  become  impatient,  and  had  fallen  on 
the  chest  of  sailors'  clothes,  and  each  had  taken  from  it 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  205 

what  article  he  had  pleased.  "I  preferred,"  said  she, 
"  that  you  should  see  them  in  this  odd  sort  of  a  disguise, 
rather  than  quite  naked,  like  little  savages;"  in  which  opin- 
ion I  assured  her  that  I  heartily  joined. 

It  was  now  our  turn  to  give  an  account  of  our  journey: 
as  we  advanced  in  our  narrative,  we  presented,  one  after 
another,  casks,  bulrushes,  salt,  fish,  and  lastly,  with  infinite 
triumph,  our  beautiful  kangaroo.  In  a  trice  it  was  sur- 
rounded, examined,  and  admired  by  all,  and  such  a  variety 
of  questions  asked,  that  Ernest  and  I  scarcely  knew  which 
to  answer  first.  Fritz  was  the  only  one  who  was  a  little 
silent.  I  saw  plainly  by  his  countenance  what  was  passing 
in  his  mind.  He  was  jealous  of  the  good  fortune  of  his 
brother  Ernest;  but  I  also  saw  that  he  was  struggling  man- 
fully against  the  ascendancy  of  so  mean  a  passion.  In  a 
short  time  he  had  succeeded  so  completely,  that  he  joined 
frankly  and  unaffectedly  in  our  conversation  and  merriment. 
He  came  near  the  kangaroo,  and  examined  it;  then  turning 
to  his  brother,  he  observed  to  him,  in  a  kind  tone,  that  he 
had  had  good  luck,  and  that  he  must  be  a  good  shot  to  have 
killed  the  animal  with  so  little  difficulty. — "But,  father," 
said  he,  "when  you  go  again  to  Tent-House,  or  on  any 
other  excursion,  will  it  not  be  my  turn  to  accompany  you? 
For  here  at  Falcon's  Stream  there  is  nothing  new  to  amuse 
us;  a  few  thrushes,  and  some  pigeons;  this  is  all  we  have 
from  day  to  day,  and  I  find  it  very  tiresome." 

"  I  promise  you  cheerfully  what  you  desire,  my  dear 
boy,"  said  I,  "  for  you  have  valiantly  combated  the  jeal- 
ousy and  ill-humor  which  assailed  you  on  witnessing  your 
brother's  success  with  the  kangaroo.  I  therefore  engage 
that  you  shall  accompany  me  in  my  very  next  excursion, 
which  will  probably  take  place  at  no  greater  distance  of  time 


£06  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

than  to-morrow;  and  it  will  be  another  journey  to  the  ves- 
sel. But  in  the  meantime,  let  me  observe  to  you,  that  the 
high  opinion  I  have  shown  of  your  prudence  and  judgment, 
in  leaving  you  here,  in  charge  of  your  mother  and  your 
brothers,  ought  to  be  felt  by  you  as  more  flattering  than  the 
applause  you  would  have  gained  by  killing  a  kangaroo. 
You  have  accomplished  an  important  duty,  in  keeping  near 
them  all  the  time,  and  not  suffering  yourself  to  be  allured 
by  such  amusements  as  presented  themselves  to  your  fancy; 
and  this  conduct  has  increased  my  affection  and  respect  for 
you.  Praise  is  also  due  to  Ernest,  for  the  moderation  with 
which  he  has  felt  his  triumph,  in  so  extraordinary  an  occur- 
rence; for  he  has  not  even  told  you  of  my  humiliating  failure 
in  attempting  to  shoot  the  kangaroo.  To  triumph  over  our 
passions,  and  to  have  on  all  occasions  a  perfect  government 
of  our  temper,  is  an  acquisition  of  infinitely  more  value,  than 
the  showing  a  certain  skill  in  firing  off  a  gun,  and  happen- 
ing to  kill  an  animal.  In  our  situation,  we  are  forced  upon 
the  cultivation  of  such  arts  as  these;  but  though  we  may 
practise  them  as  necessary  for  our  existence,  we  have  no 
reason  to  be  proud  of  them." 

We  concluded  the  day  with  our  ordinary  occupations:  I 
gave  some  salt  to  each  of  our  animals,- to  whom  it  was  an 
acceptable  treat.  We  then  skinned  our  kangaroo,  and  put 
it  carefully  aside  till  the  next  day,  when  we  intended  to  cut 
it  to  pieces,  and  lay  such  parts  in  salt  as  we  could  not  im- 
mediately consume.  We  made  an  excellent  supper  on  our 
little  fish,  to  which  we  added  some  potatoes;  nor  were  our 
faithful  companions  Turk  and  Flora  neglected.  The  la- 
bours of  the  day  had  more  than  usually  disposed  us  all  to 
seek  repose;  we  therefore  said  our  prayers  at  an  early  hour 
mounted  our  ladder,  and  were  soon  asleep. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  207 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

More   Stores  from  the    Wreck. 

I  rose  with  the  first  crowing  of  the  cock,  descended  the 
ladder,  and  set  about  skinning  the  kangaroo,  taking  care  not 
to  deface  its  beautiful  smooth'  coat.  Our  dogs  relished  their 
meal  on  the  entrails  of  the  animal  so  much,  that  they  in- 
tended themselves  the  pleasure  of  a  breakfast  on  the  carcass. 
Before  I  could  descend,  they  had  got  off  its  head,  as  it 
hung  by  the  hind  feet,  and,  half  friends,  half  foes,  they  were 
going  to  share  their  prize  when  I  made  my  appearance. 
Recollecting  our  want  of  the  means  of  protection  against 
similar  depredations,  I  thought  it  right  to  give  them  a  slight 
correction  for  their  fault.  My  wife,  awaked  by  the  growl- 
ing they  made  as  they  slunk  away  to  the  hollow  of  a  tree, 
was  alarmed,  and  came  down  the  ladder  to  see  what  was 
the  matter;  and  now  I  had  to  perform  the  farther  task  of 
appeasing  her  kind  heart  for  what  she  called  a  cruel  act. 
"Kind-hearted  creature,"  said  I,  "well  I  know  how  glad 
you  would  be  if  there  were  not  a  stick  in  the  world!  But  I 
did  not  beat  Turk  and  Flora  through  anger  or  revenge,  but 
from  prudence  and  precaution:  they  intended  modestly  only 
to  eat  up  our  kangaroo,  which  you  promised  yourself  such 
pleasure  in  cooking;  and  unable  as  I  was  to  acquaint  them 
in  the  canine  tongue,  that  it  was  not  placed  there  for  their 
use,  it  was  proper  to  let  them  know  this  in  such  a  way  as  to 


208  THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

deter  them  in  future ;  otherwise,  as  they  are  strongest,  they 
would  end  by  devouring  ail  our  stock." 

My  wife  owned  I  was  in  the  right:  but  I  observed  her 
from  a  corner  of  my  eye  hovering  about  the  hollow  tree,  and 
patting  the  dogs  to  console  them.  I  now  set  about  stripping 
my  kangaroo,  without  injuring  the  skin;  but  I  advanced  so 
slowly  in  the  business,  that  my  family  were  assembled  about 
us,  and  calling  out  Famine !  before  I  had  finished  my  work. 
Having  at  last  completed  it,  I  went  to  the  river  to  wash  my- 
self thoroughly,  and  then  to  the  sailors'  chest  to  change  my 
coat,  that  I  might  appear  with  decency  at  breakfast,  and 
give  my  sons  an  example  of  that  cleanliness  which  their 
mother  was  so  eager  to  inculcate.  Breakfast  over,  I  order- 
ed Fritz  to  get  ready  for  Tent-House,  where  we  should  pre- 
pare the  boat,  and  proceed  to  the  vessel. 

After  taking  an  affectionate  leave  of  my  wife,  we  began 
our  journey.  I  left  Flora  with  her,  and  entreated  her  not 
to  be  uneasy,  and  to  commit  herself  to  the  care  of  the  kind 
Providence  who  had  till  then  so  graciously  watched  over  us, 
and  who  would  again  bring  us  back  to  her  safe  and  sound, 
enriched  with  many  things  conducive  to  our  welfare.  But 
to  bring  her  to  reason  on  the  subject  of  these  trips  to  the 
vessel  was  impracticable:  I  left  her  bathed  in  tears,  and 
praying  God  that  this  might  be  the  last. 

We  took  Ernest  and  Jack  a  little  way  with  us,  and  then  I 
sent  them  back  with  a  message  to  their  mother,  which  I  had 
not  the  resolution  to  deliver  myself — that  we  might  be 
forced  to  pass  the  night  on  board  the  vessel,  and  not  return 
till  the  evening  of  the  following  day.  It  was  most  essential 
to  get  out  of  it,  if  yet  afloat,  all  that  could  be  saved,  as  a 
moment  might  complete  its  destruction.  I  instructed  my 
sons  how  they  should  soothe  their  mother;   I  exhorted  them 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  209 

to  obey  and  to  assist  her;  and  that  their  excursion  might  not 
be  useless,  I  directed  them  to  gather  some  salt,  and  enjoined 
them  to  be  at  Falcon's  Stream  before  noon. 

We  got.into  the  boat,  and  gaining  the  current,  quickly- 
cleared  Safety  Bay,  and  reached  the  vessel,  whose  open  side 
offered  us  an  ample  space  to  get  on  board.  When  we  had 
fastened  our  boat,  our  first  care  was  to  select  fit  materials 
ta  construct  a  raft,  as  suggested  by  my  son  Ernest.  Our 
boat  of  staves  had  neither  room  nor  solidity  enough  to  carry 
a  considerable  burden;  we  therefore  looked  about,  and 
found  a  sufficient  number  of  water-casks  which  appeared  to 
me  proper  for  my  new  enterprise.  We  emptied  them,  re- 
placed the  bungs  carefully,  and  threw  the  casks  overboard, 
after  securing  them  with  ropes  and  cramps,  so  as  to  keep 
them  together  at  the  vessel's  side:  this  completed,  we  placed 
a  sufficient  number  of  planks  upon  them  to  form  a  firm  and 
commodious  platform  or  deck,  to  which  we  added  a  gunwale 
of  a  foot  in  depth  all  round,  to  secure  the  lading:  Thus  we 
contrived  a  handsome  raft,  in  which  we  could  stow  thrice  as 
much  as  in  our  boat.  This  laborious  task  had  taken  up  the 
whole  day;  we  scarcely  allowed  ourselves  a  minute  to  eat 
some  cold  meat  we  had  provided,  that  we  might  not  lose  any 
time  in  looking  for  the  provisions  on  board  the  vessel.  In 
the  evening,  Fritz  and  I  were  so  weary,  that  it  would  have 
been  impossible  for  us  to  row  back  to  land;  so  having  taken 
all  due  precautions  in  case  of  a  storm,  we  lay  down  in  the 
captain's  cabin,  on  a  good  elastic  mattrass,  which  induced 
such  sound  repose,  that  our  prudent  design  to  watch  in  turn, 
for  fear  of  accident,  was  forgot,  and  we  both  slept  heavily, 
side  by  side,  till  broad  daylight  opened  our  eves.  We  rose, 
and  actively  set  to  work  to  load  our  raft. 

We  began  with  stripping  the  cabin  of  its  doors  and  win- 

S 


210  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

dows,  with  their  appendages;  next  we  secured  the  carpen- 
ter's and  gunner's  chests,  containing  all  their  tools  and  im- 
plements: those  we  could  remove  with  levers  and  rollers 
were  put  entire  upon  the  raft,  and  we  took  out  of  the  others 
what  rendered  them  too  heavy.  One  of  the  captain's  chests 
was  filled  with  costly  articles,  which  no  doubt  he  meant  to 
disposeof  to  the  opulent  planters  of  Port  Jackson,  or  among 
the  savages.  la  the  collection  were  several  gold  and  silver 
watches,  snuff-boxes  of  all  descriptions,  buckles,  shirt-but- 
tons, necklaces,  rings;  in  short,  an  abundance  of  all  the 
trifles  of  European  luxury.  But  the  discovery  that  delight- 
ed me  most,  was  a  chest  containing  some  dozens  of  young 
plants  of  every  species  of  European  fruits,  which  had  been 
carefully  packed  in  moss  for  transportation.  I  perceived 
pear,  plum,  almond,  peach,  apple,  apricot,  chestnut  trees, 
and  vine  shoots.  I  beheld  with  a  feeling  I  cannot  describe, 
those  productions  of  my  dear  country,  which  once  so  agree- 
ably embellished  my  rural  dwelling,  and  which,  I  might 
hope,  would  thrive  in  a  foreign  soil.  We  discovered  a  num- 
ber of  bars  of  iron,  and  large  pigs  of  lead,  grinding-stones, 
cart-wheels  ready  for  mounting,  a  complete  set  of  farrier's 
instruments,  tongs,  shovels,  ploughshares,  rolls  of  iron  and 
copper  wire,  sacks  full  of  maize,  pease,  oats,  vetches,  and 
even  a  little  hand-mill.  The  vessel  had  been  freighted  with 
every  thing  likely  to  be  useful  in  an  infant  colony  so  dis- 
tant. We  found  a  saw-mill,  in  a  separated  state,  but  each 
piece  numbered,  and  so  accurately  fitted,  that  nothing  was 
easier  than  to  put  it  together  for  use. 

I  had  now  to  consider  what  of  all  these  treasures  I  should 
take  or  leave.  It  was  impossible  to  carry  with  us  in  one 
trip  such  a  quantity  of  goods;  and  to  leave  them  in  the  ves- 
sel, was  exposing  ourselves  to  be  wholly  deprived  of  them. 


TKE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  211 

We  with  difficulty  and  hard  labour  finished  our  loading, 
having  added  a  large  fishing-net,  quite  new,  and  the  vessel's 
great  compass.  With  the  net,  Fritz  found  two  harpoons 
and  a  rope-windlass,  such  as  they  use  in  the  whale-fishery. 
He  asked  me  to  let  him  place  the  harpoons,  tied  to  the  end 
of  the  rope,  over  the  bow  of  our  tub-boat,  and  thus  be  in 
readiness  in  case  of  seeing  any  large  fish;  and  I  indulged 
him  in  his  fancy. 

Having  completely  executed  our  undertaking,  we  stepped 
into  the  tub-boat,  and  with  some  small  difficulty,  which  a 
little  reflection  and  a  few  experiments  soon  enabled  us  to 
overcome,  we  pushed  out  for  the  current,  drawing  our  raft 
triumphantly  after  us  with  a  stout  rope,  which  we  had  been 
careful  to  fasten  securely  at  its  head. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The    Tortoise  harnessed. 

The  wind  was  favourable,  and  briskly  swelled  our  sail. 
The  sea  was  calm,  and  we  advanced  at  a  considerable  rate. 
Fritz  had  for  some  time  fixed  his  eyes  on  something  of  a 
large  size  which  was  floating  on  the  water,  and  he  now  de- 
sired me  to  take  the  glass,  and  see  what  it  could  be.  I  soon 
perceived  that  it  was  a  tortoise,  which  had  fallen  asleep  in 
the  sun  on  the  surface  of  the  water.  No  sooner  bad  Fritz 
learned  this,  than  he  entreated  me  to  steer  softly  within  view 
of  so  extraordinary  a  creature.     I  readily  consented;  but  as 


212     ,  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

his  back  was  towards  me,  and  the  sail  between  us,  I  did  not 
observe  his  motions,  till  a  violent  jerk  of  the  boat,  a  sudden 
turning  of  the  windlass,  and  then  a  second  jerk,  accompanied 
by  a  rapid  motion  of  the  boat,  gave  me  the  necessarv  expla- 
nation. "For  Heaven's  sake,  what  are  you  about,  Fritz?" 
exclaimed  I,  somewhat  alarmed. 

"  I  have  caught  him! — I  touched  him!"  cried  Fritz, 

without  hearing  one  word  I  had  been  saying. — "  The  tor- 
toise is  ours;  it  cannot  escape,  father!  Is  not  this,  then,  a 
valuable  prize,  for  it  will  furnish  dinners  for  us  all  for  many 
weeks?" 

I  soon  perceived  that  the  harpoon  had  caught  the  animal, 
which,  feeling  itself  wounded,  thus  agitated  the  vessel  in  its 
endeavours  to  get  away.  I  quickly  pulled  down  the  sail,  and 
seizing  a  hatchet,  sprung  to  the  boat's  head  to  cut  the  rope, 
and  let  the  harpoon  and  the  tortoise  go;  but  Fritz  caught 
hold  of  my  arm,  conjuring  me  to  wait  a  moment,  and  not  so 
hastily  bring  upon  him  the  mortification  of  losing,  at  one 
stroke,  the  harpoon,  the  rope,  and  the  tortoise:  he  proposed 
watching  himself,  with  the  hatchet  in  his  hand,  to  cut  the 
rope  suddenly,  should  any  sign  of  danger  appear;  and  I 
yielded  to  his  entreaties. 

Thus,  then,  drawn  along  by  the  tortoise,  we  proceeded 
with  a  hazardous  rapidity.  I  soon  observed  that  the  crea- 
ture was  making  for  the  sea;  I  therefore  again  hoisted  the 
sail:  and  as  the  wind  was  to  the  land,  and  very  brisk,  the 
tortoise  found  resistance  of  no  avail:  he  accordingly  fell  into 
the  track  of  the  current,  apd  drew  us  straight  towards  our 
usual  place  of  landing,  and  by  good  fortune  without  striking 
upon  any  of  the  rocks.  We,  however,  did  not  disembark 
without  one  difficult  adventure.  The  state  of  the  tide  was 
such  as  to  throw  us  upon  a  sand  bank:  we  were  at  this  time 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  213 

within  a  gunshot  of  the  shore;  the  boat,  though  driven  with 
violence,  remained  upright  in  the  sand.  I  stepped  into  the 
water,  which  did  not  reach  far  above  my  knees,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  conferring  upon  our  conductor  his  just  reward  for  the 
alarm  he  had  caused  us,  when  he  suddenly  gave  a  plunge, 
and  then  disappeared.  Following  the  rope,  I  _presently  saw 
the  tortoise  stretched  at  length  at  the  bottom  of  the  water, 
where  it  was  so  shallow  that  I  soon  found  means  to  put  an 
end  to  his  pain,  by  cutting  off  his  head  with  the  hatchet,  and 
he  bled  to  death.  Being  now  near  Tent-House,  Fritz  gave 
a  halloo,  and  fired- a  gun,  to  apprize  our  relatives  that  we  were 
not  only  arrived,  but  arrived  in  triumph.  This  soon  produced 
the  desired  effect:  the  mother  and  her  three  young  ones  soon 
appeared,  running  towards  us;"  upon  which  Fritz  jumped 
out  of  the  boat,  placed  the  head  of  our  sea-prize  on  the 
muzzle  of  his  gun,  and  walked  to  shore,  which  I  reached  at 
the  same  moment;  and  all  were  once  more  received  with  the 
kindest  salutations,  and  such  questions  as  kindness  best 
knows  how  to  propose. 

After  some  gentle  reproaches  from  my  wife,  for  leaving 
her  and  the  boys  for  so  long  a  time,  the  history  of  the  tor- 
toise was  related,  and  excited  much  merriment  in  our  audi- 
tors. The  tender-hearted  mother,  after  heaving  a  sigh  for 
the  hard  fate  of  the  creature,  began  to  shudder  at  the  thought 
of  the  danger  we  had  been  exposed  to,  and  the  escape  we 
had  effected. 

Our  conversation  ended,  I  requested  my  wife  to  go  with 
two  of  the  younger  boys  to  Falcon's  Stream,  and  fetch  the 
sledge  and  the  beasts  of  burden,  that  we  might  see  at  least 
a  part  of  our  booty  from  the  ship  put  safely  under  shelter  the 
same  evening.  A  tempest,  or  even  the  tide,  might  sweep 
away  the  whole  during  the  night!     We  took  every  precau- 


214  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBESON. 

tion  in  our  power  against-  the  latter  danger,  by  fixing  the 
boat  and  the  raft,  now,  at  the  time  of  its  reflux,  as  securely 
as  we  could  without  an  anchor.  I  rolled  two  prodigious 
masses  of  lead,  with  the  assistance  of  levers,  from  the  raft 
upon  the  shore,  and  then  tied  a  rope  to  each,  the  other  ends 
of  which  were  fastened,  one  to  the  raft,  and  the  other  to  the 
boat,  and  thus  satisfied  myself  that  they  could  not  easily  be 
forced  away. 

While  we  were  employed  on  this  scheme,  the  sledge  ar- 
rived, and  we  placed  the  tortoise  upon  it,  and  also  some 
other  articles  of  light  weight,  mattrasses,  pieces  of  linen, 
&c. ;  for  I  reckoned  that  the  animal  itself  weighed  at  least 
three  quintals.  The  strength  of  our  whole  party  was  found 
necessary  to  move  it  from  the  raft  to  the  sledge;  we  therefore 
all  set  out  together  to  unload  it  again  at  Falcon's  Stream. 

Our  first  concern,  on  reaching  our  abode,  was  the  tor- 
toise, which  we  immediately  turned  on  his  back,  that  we 
might  strip  off  the  shell,  and  make  use  of  some  of  the  flesh 
while  it  was  fresh.  Taking  my  hatchet,  I  separated  the 
upper  and  under  shell  all  round,  which  were  joined  together 
by  cartilages.  The  upper  shell  of  the  tortoise  is  extremely 
convex;  the  under,  on  the  contrary,  is  nearly  flat.  I  cut 
away  as  much  of  the  flesh  of  the  animal  as  was  sufficient  for 
a  meal,  and  laid  the  rest  carefully  on  the  under  shell,  which 
served  as  a  dish,  recommending  to  my  wife  to  cook  what  I 
had  cut  off,  on  the  other  shell,  with  no  other  seasoning  than 
a  little  salt,  and  pledged  myself  that  she  would  produce  a 
luxurious  dish.  "  We  will  then,"  said  I,  "  rub  salt  on  what 
we  mean  to  keep,  and  distribute  the  head,  entrails,  and  {eet 
to  the  dogs;  for  all,  you  know,  must  live." 

"  Oh  dear  papa,"  cried  Francis,  "  do  give  me  the  shell, 
it  will  be  such  a  pretty  plaything!" 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  215 

t{  No,  no,"  bawled  out  another;  and  one  and  all  contend- 
ed for  the  preference.  I  imposed  silence,  declaring  that 
the  right  was  entirely  in  Fritz;  "  but,"  continued  I,  "it  may 
,  be  well  to  ask  what  each  of  you  thought  of  doing  with  the 
shell,  if  he  had  obtained  it?" 

Ernest. — /  should  turn  it  into  a  shield  to  defend  myself 
with,  if  the  savages  should  come  upon  us. 

Father.- — Ah,  there  is  my  egotist  again;  but  let  us  see  in 
what  way  you  would  use  it.  You  would  fling  it  across  your 
shoulders,  no  doubt,  and  take  to  your  heels  manfully.  I 
have  guessed  right,  my  poor  Ernest,  have  I  not? — And  you, 
Jack,  what  have  you  to  say? 

Jack. — I  should  make  a  nice  little  boat  of  it,  which  would 
help  to  amuse  us  all.  I  was  thinking  how  cleverly  we  could 
fill  it  with  potatoes,  or  the  other  things  we  want  to  take  from 
Tent-House  to  Falcon's  Nest;  it  would  glide  along  so  nicely 
with  the  stream,  and  we  should  be  saved  all  the  fatigue  we 
now  have  in  carrying  them. 

Father. — Your  scheme,  I  grant,  is  not  ill-imagined;  but  a 
small  raft,  or  an  old  chest,  would  do  just  as  well  for  your 
purpose. — And  now  for  my  little  Francis;  I  wonder  what 
pretty  plan  he  had  thought  of? 

Francis. — I  thought  I  should  build  a  little  house,  papa, 
and  the  shell  would  make  such  a  nice  roof  to  it! 

Father. — Vastly  well,  my  lads,  if  we  had  only  our  amuse- 
ment or  our  ease  to  think  of;  but  I  want  you  all  to  form  the 
habit  of  thinking  and  acting  for  the  general  good,  rather 
than  that  of  what  will  most  gratify  or  accommodate  his  single 
self. — Now,  then,  let  me  ask,  to  what  use  Fritz,  the  only 
rightful  claimant  to  the  shell,  had  intended  to  apply  it? 

Fritz. — I  thought,  father,  of  cleaning  it  thoroughly,  and 
fixing  it  by  the  side  of  our  river,  and  keeping  it  always  full 


216  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

of  pure  water  for  my  mother's  use,  when  she  has  to  wash 
the  linen,  or  cook  our  victuals. 

Father. — Excellent,  excellent,  my  boy!  all  honour  to  the 
founder  of  the  pure  ivater-tub!  This  is  what  I  call  thinking 
for  the  general  good.  And  we  will  take  care  to  execute  the 
idea  as  soon  as  we  can  prepare  some  clay,  as  a  solid  foun- 
dation for  its  bottom. 

Jack. — Hah,  hah!  Now  then  it  is  my  turn;  for  I  have  got 
some  clay,  which  I  have  put  by  to  keep  for  use,  behind  those 
old  roots  yonder. 

Father. — And  where  did  you  get  it,  boy? 

Mother. — Oh,  you  may  apply  to  me  for  this  part  of  the  in- 
formation; to  my  cost  I  know  where  the  clay  was  got. — 
This  morning  early,  my  young  hero  falls  to  digging  and 
scrambling  on  the  hill  you  see  to  the  right,  and  home  he 
comes  with  the  news,  that  he  has  found  a  bed  of  clay;  but 
in  so  dirty  a  condition  himself,  that  we  were  obliged  to  think 
next  of  the  washing-tub. 

Jack. — And  if  I  had  minded  a  little  dirt,  mother,  T  should 
not  have  discovered  this  bed  of  clay,  which  you  will  see  will 
be  of  great  use  to  us.  As  I  was  returning  from  looking  for 
potatoes,  I  thought  I  would  take  the  high  path  along  the 
river,  just  to  see  how  rapidly  it  runs  and  forms  those  nice 
cascades:  by  and  by  I  came  to  a  large  slope,  watered  by  the 
river;  it  was  so  slippery,  that  I  could  not  keep  upon  my 
legs;  so  I  fell,  and  dirtied  myself  all  over:  on  looking,  I 
saw  that  the  ground  was  all  of  clay,  and  almost  liquid,  so  I 
made  some  of  it  into  balls,  and  brought  them  home. 

Ernest. — When  the  water-tub  is  complete,  I  will  put  some 
roots  I  have  found  to  soak  a  little  in  it,  for  they  are  now 
extremely  dry.  I  do  not  exactly  know  what  they  are;  they 
look  something'  like  the  radish,  or  horse-radish;  but  the  plant 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  217 

fiom  which  I  took  them  was  almost  the  size  of  a  bush:  being 
ignorant,  however,  of  its  name  or  nature,  I  have  not  yet 
ventured  to  taste  the  roots,  though  I  saw  our  sow  eat  hearti- 
ly of  them. 

Father. — If  my  suspicion  is  right,  you  have  made  a  ben* 
eficial  discovery,  which,  with  the  assistance  of  our  potatoes, 
may  furnish  us  the  means  of  existence  as  long  as  we  may 
remain  in  this  island!  I  think  your  roots  are  manioc,  of 
which  the  natives  of  the  West  Indies  make  a  sort  of  bread 
or  cake  which  they  call  cassave.  But  we  must  first  carry 
the  production  through  a  certain  preparation,  without  which 
it  possesses  pernicious  properties.  Try  to  find  the  same 
place,  and  bring  a  sufficient  quantity  for  our  first  experi- 
ment. 

We  had  finished  unloading  the  sledge,  and  I  bade  the 
three  eldest  boys  accompany  me  to  fetch  another  load  before 
it  should  be  dark.  We  left  Francis  and  his  mother  busy 
in  preparing  a  refreshing  meal  for  supper,  the  tortoise 
having  presented  itself  most  opportunely  for  this  purpose. 

Having  reached  the  raft,  we  took  from  it  as  many  effects 
as  the  sledge  could  hold,  or  the  animals  draw  along.  One 
object  of  my  attention  was  to  secure  two  chests  which  con- 
tained the  clothes  of  my  family,  which  I  well  knew  would 
afford  the  highest  gratification  to  my  wife,  who  had  frequent- 
ly lamented  that  they  were  all  compelled  to  wear  clothes 
that  were  not  their  own;  reminding  her  at  every  moment, 
she  said,  how  much  they  might  be  wanted  by  their  proper 
claimants.  I  reckoned  also  on  finding  in  one  of  the  chests 
some  books  on  interesting  subjects,  and  principally  a  large 
handsomely  printed  Bible.  I  added  to  these,  four  cart- 
wheels and  a  hand-mill  for  grinding;  which,  now  that  we  had 
discovered  the  manioc,  I  considered  of  signal  importance. 

T 


218  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

These  and  a  few  other  articles  completed  our  present 
load. 

On  our  return  to  Falcon's  Nest,  we  found  my  wife  looking 
anxiously  for  our  arrival,  and  ready  with  the  welcome  she 
had  promised,  of  an  ample  and  agreeable  repast.  Before 
she  had  well  examined  our  new  stores,  she  drew  me,  with 
one  of  her  sweetest  smiles,  by  the  arm, — "  Step  this  way," 
said  she/and  leading  to  the  shade  of  a  tree, — "this  is  the 
work  I  performed  in  your  absence,"  pointing  to  a  large  cask 
half  sunk  in  the  ground,  and  the  rest  covered  over  with 
branches  of  trees.  She  then  applied  a  small  cork-screw  to 
the  side,  and  filling  the  shell  of  a  cocoa-nut  with  the  contents, 
presented  it  to  me.  I  found  the  liquor  equal  to  the  best 
canary  I  had  ever  tasted. — "How  then,"  said  I,  "  have 
you  performed  this  new  miracle?  I  cannot  believe  the  en- 
chanted bag  produced  it."— -"  Not  exactly,"  replied  she: 
"for  this  time  it  was  an  obliging  white  wave  which  threw  it 
on  shore.  I  took  a  little  ramble  in  your  absence  yesterday, 
to  see  what  I  could  find,  and  well  my  trouble  was  rewarded! 
The  boys  ran  for  the  sledge,  and  had  but  little  difficulty  in 
getting  the  cask  to  Falcon's  Stream,  where  we  dug  this 
place  in  the  earth  to  keep  it  cool." 

My  wife  now  proposed  that  all  should  be  regaled  with 
some  of  the  delicious  beverage.  My  own  share  so  invigo- 
rated me,  that  I  found  myself  able  to  complete  my  day's 
work,  by  drawing  up  the  mattrasses  we  had  brought  from 
the  ship,  to  our  chamber  in  the  tree,  by  means  of  a  pulley. 
When  I  had  laid  them  along  to  advantage,  they  looked  so 
inviting,  that  I  could  scarcely  resist  my  desire  of  at  once 
committing  myself  to  the  kind  relief  they  seemed  to  offer  to 
my  exhausted  strength. 

But  now  the  savory  smell  of  the  tortoise  laid  claim  to 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  Q19 

my  attention.  I  hastened  down,  and  we  all  partook  heartily 
of  the  luxurious  treat.  We  returned  thanks  to  God,  and 
speedily  retired  to  taste  the  blessing  of  sound  repose  upon 
the  said  mattrasses. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Another   Trip  to  the    Wreck. 

I  rose  before  day  to  go  to  the  sea-side  and  inspect  our 
two  vessels.  I  gently  descended  the  ladder  without  awak- 
ing my  family.  Above,  the  scene  was  all  repose;  below, 
every  thing  was  in  life  and  motion.  The  dogs  jumped  about 
me,  the  cock  and  the  hens  flapped  their  wings  and  chuckled, 
and  our  goats  shook  their  long  beards  as  they  browsed.  I 
quickly  roused  and  harnessed  the  ass,  and  the  dogs  followed 
without  bidding.  As  I  approached  the  shore,  animated  at 
different  moments  by  hope  and  fear,  I  soon  saw  that  the 
boat  and  raft  had  resisted  the  tide,  though  it  had  partially 
heaved  them  up.  I  got  quickly  on  the  raft,  took  a  small 
loading,  and  returned  to  Falcon's  Stream  in  time  for  break- 
fast; but  not  a  single  creature  of  its  inhabitants  appeared, 
though  the  sun  was  high  above  the  horizon. — I  gave  a  shout 
as  loud  as  a  war-whoop,  which  awoke  my  wife.  "Really, 
my  dear,"  said  she,  "  there  must  be  a  magic  charm  in  the 
mattrass  you  brought  yesterday,  that  has  lulled  us  into  so 
sound  a  sleep." — "  Up,  my  lads,"  exclaimed  I,  once  again; 
"the  more  we  venture  to  parley  with  sloth,  the  longer  she 


220  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

holds  us  in  her  chains ;  brave  youths  like  you  ought  to  awa^e 
at  the  first  call,  and  leap  quick  and  gaily  out  of  bed.  Fritz, 
a  little  ashamed,  was  dressed  first;  Jack  soon  after  him,  and 
Francis  next;  the  ever  slothful  Ernest  was  the  last. — "  It  is 
so  delightful,"  cried  he,  "  to  lose  oneself  again  after  having 
been  awakened!  one  feels  sleep  come  on  afresh  so  gently." 
— "  But  it  is  my  duty  to  tell  you,  Ernest,  and  that  gravely, 
that  he  who  indulges  himself  in  all  that  flatters  his  senses, 
will  end  by  falling  a  victim  to  them." 

After  this  short  admonition,  we  all  came  down;  and 
breakfast  over,  we  returned  to  the  sea-side  to  complete  the 
unloading  of  the  raft,  that  it  might  be  ready  for  sea  on  the 
ebbing  of  the  tide.  We  were  not  long  in  taking  two  cargoes 
to  Falcon's  Stream.  At  our  last  trip  the  water  was  nearly 
up  to  our  craft.  I  sent  back  my  wife  and  the  boys,  and  re- 
mained with  Fritz  till  we  were  quite  afloat;  when  observing 
Jack  still  loitering  near,  I  guessed  at  his  wish,  and  consented 
to  his  embarking  with  us.  Shortly  after,  the  tide  was  high 
enough  for  us  to  row  off.  Instead  of  steering  for  Safety 
Bay  to  moor  our  vessels  there  securely,  I  was  tempted  by 
a  fresh  sea-breeze  to  go  out  again  to  the  wreck;  but  it  was 
too  late  to  undertake  much,  and  I  was  unwilling  to  cause 
my  dear  partner  uneasiness  by  passing  another  night  on 
board.  I  therefore  determined  to  bring  away  only  what 
could  be  obtained  with  ease  and  speed:  we  searched  hastily 
through  the  ship  for  any  trifling  articles  that  might  be 
readily  removed.  Jack  was  up  and  down  every  where,  at  a 
loss  what  to  select;  and  when  I  saw  him  again,  he  drew  a 
wheelbarrow  after  him,  shouting  that  he  had  found  a  vehicle 
for  carrying  our  potatoes. 

But  Fritz  next  disclosed  still  better  news,  which  was, 
that  he  had  discovered  behind  the  bulk-head  amid  ship,  a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  221 

pinnace  (i.  e.  a  small  craft,  the  forepart  of  which  is  square) 
taken  to  pieces,  with  all  its  appurtenances,  and  even  two 
small  guns  for  its  defence.  This  intelligence  so  delighted 
me,  that  I  quitted  every  thing  else  to  run  to  the  bulkhead, 
when  I  was  convinced  of  the  truth  of  the  lad's  assertion: 
but  I  instantly  perceived,  that  to  put  it  together,  and  launch 
it,  would  be  an  Herculean  task.  I  collected  various  uten- 
sils, a  copper  boiler,  some  plates  of  iron,  tobacco-graters, 
two  grinding-stones,  a  small  barrel  of  gunpowder,  and  an- 
other full  of  flints,  which  I  much  valued.  Jack's  barrow 
was  not  forgotten;  two  more  were  afterwards  found  and 
added,  with  straps  belonging  to  them.  All  these  articles 
were  hurried  into  the  boat,  and  we  re-embarked  with  speed, 
to  avoid  the  land  wind  that  rises  in  the  evening.  As  we 
were  drawing  near  to  shore,  we  were  struck  with  the  ap- 
pearance of  an  assemblage  of  small  figures  ranged  in  a  long 
line  on  the  strand,  that  seemed  to  be  viewing  us  attentive- 
ly: they  were  dressed  in  black,  and  all  uniform,  with  white 
waistcoats  and  full  cravats:  the  arms  of  these  beings  hung 
down  carelessly;  now  and  then,  however,  they  seemed  to 
extend  them  tenderly,  as  if  they  wished  to  embrace  or  offer 
us  a  token  of  friendship. 

"  I  really  think,"  said  I  to  the  boys, who  were  steadfastly 
gazing  at  them,  "  that  we  are  in  the  country  of  the  pygmies, 
and  that  they  wish  to  form  a  friendly  alliance  with  us." 

Jack, — Oh,  no!  father,  they  are  certainly  Lilliputians, 
though  somewhat  bigger  than  those  of  whom  I  read  the  de- 
scription in  Gulliver's  Travels. 

"You  then,  child,"  said  I,  "consider  those  travels  as 
true ;  that  there  is  an  island  of  Lilliput,  and  inhabited  by 
dwarfs?" 

Jack. — Gulliver  says  so.  He  met  also  with  men  of  an 
immense  stature,  besides  an  island  inhabited  by  horses 


£22  THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON. 

Ci  And  yet  I  must  tell  you  that  the  only  reality  in  all  his 
-discoveries  is  the  rich  imagination  of  the  author,  whose 
taste  and  feeling  led  him  to  resort  to  allegory  for  the  purpose 
of  revealing  grand  truths.  Do  you  know,  Jack,  what  an 
allegory  is?" 

"  It  somewhat  resembles  a  parable,  I  presume." 

"  Right,  one  is  very  similar  to  the  other." 

Jack. — And  the  pygmies  you  mentioned,  are  any  to  be 
found? 

"  JNo  more  than  there  are  Lilliputians;  they  exist  only 
in  poetical  fiction,  or  in  the  erroneous  account  of  some  an- 
cient navigators,  in  which  a  group  of  monkeys  has  been 
fallaciously  described  as  diminutive  men." 

Fritz. — Such  probably  are  the  manikins  that  we  see  now 
stretching  out  their  arms  towards  us. — Ah,  now  I  begin  to 
perceive  that  they  have  beaks,  and  that  their  arms  are  short 
drooping  wings; — what  strange  birds! 

"  You  are  right,  son,  they  are  penguins  or  ruffs.  Ernest 
killed  one  soon  after  our  arrival.  They  are  excellent  swim- 
mers, but  cannot  fly;  and  so  confused  are  they  when  on  land, 
that  they  run  in  the  silliest  way  into  danger." 

While  we  were  talking  I  steered  gently  towards  shore,  to 
enjoy  the  uncommon  sight  the  longer;  but  the  very  moment 
we  got  into  shallow  water,  my  giddy  Jack  leaped  up  to  his 
waist  into  it,  and  was  quickly  on  land,  battering  with  his 
stick  among  the  penguins  before  they  were  aware  of  his 
approach,  so  that  half  a  dozen  of  them  were  immediately 
laid  flat;  the  remainder,  seeing  they  were  so  roughly  accost- 
ed, plunged  into  the  sea,  dived,  and  disappeared. 

As  the  sun  declined,  and  we  despaired  of  finishing  before 
night  set  in,  each  of  us  filled  a  barrow,  in  order  to  take 
home  something.  I  requested  that  the  tobacco-graters  and 
iron  plates  might  be  in  the  first  load. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  223 

Arrived  at  Falcon's  Stream,  my  wife  exhibited  a  good 
store  of  potatoes  which  she  had  got  in  during  our  absence, 
and  a  quantity  of  the  roots  I  had  taken  for  manioc,  and  in 
which  I  was  not  mistaken;  I  much  applauded  her  diligence 
and  foresight,  and  gave  Ernest  and  little  Francis  their  share 
of  approbation. 

"  But  now,"  said  I,  "for  some  supper  and  repose;  and 
if  my  little  workmen  should  be  industriously  inclined  to- 
morrow, I  shall  reward  them  with  the  novelty  of  a  new  trade 
to  be  learned."  This  did  not  fail  to  excite  the  curiosity  of 
all;  but  I  kept  my  word,  and  made  them  wait  till  the  follow- 
ing day  for  the  explanation  I  had  to  give. 

I  waked  the  boys  very  early,  reminding  them  that  I  had 
promised  to  teach  them  a  new  trade.  "  What  is  it?  What 
is  it?"  exclaimed  they  all  at  once,  springing  suddenly  out 
of  bed  and  hurrying  on  their  clothes. 

Father. — It  is  the  art  of  the  baker,  my  boys.  Hand  me 
those  iron  plates  that  we  brought  yesterday  from  the  vessel, 
and  the  tobacco-graters  also,  and  we  will  make  our  experi- 
ment. Ernest,  bring  hither  the  roots  found  underground: 
but  first,  my  dear,  1  must  request  you  to  make  me  a  small 
bag  of  a  piece  of  strong  wrapper  cloth. 

My  wife  set  instantly  to  work  to  oblige  me;  but  having  no 
great  confidence  in  my  talents  for  making  either  bread  or 
cakes,  she  first  filled  a  copper  boiler  with  potatoes,  and  put 
it  on  the  fire,  that  we  might  not  be  without  something  to  eat 
at  dinner  time:  in  the  meanwhile  I  spread  a  piece  of  coarse 
linen  on  the  ground,  and  assembled  my  young  ones  round 
me;  I  gave  each  of  the  boys  a  grater,  and  showed  him  at 
the  same  time  how  to  rest  it  on  the  linen,  and  then  to  grate 
the  roots  of  manioc;  in  a  short  time  each  had  produced  a 
considerable  heap  of  a  substance  somewhat  resembling  pol- 


224  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

lard.  The  occupation,  as  is  always  the  case  with  novelties, 
was  amusing  to  them  all,  and  they  looked  no  further  into 
the  matter:  one  showed  the  other  his  heap,  saying  in  a  ban- 
tering tone:  "  Will  you  eat  a  bit  of  nice  cake  made  of  grated 
radishes  V 

I  now  informed  them  that  the  manioc  was  known  to  be 
the  principal  sustenance  of  whole  nations  of  the  Continent 
of  America,  and  which  the  Europeans  who  inhabit  those 
countries  prefer  to  even  our  wheaten  bread.  I  added 
"  there  are  many  kinds  of  manioc:  one  of  these  shoots  rapid- 
ly, and  its  roots  become  mature  in  a  short  time;  a  second 
sort  is  of  more  tardy  growth;  and  there  is  another,  the  roots 
of  which  require  the  space  of  two  years  to  be  fit  for  use. 
The  first  two  kinds  have  pernicious  or  unwholesome  qualities 
when  eaten  raw,  but  the  third  may  be  eaten  without  fear: 
for  all  this,  the  two  first  are  generally  preferred,  as  being 
more  productive,  and  requiring  a  shorter  time  for  being  fit 
for  use." 

By  this  time  my  wife  had  completed  the  bag.  I  had  it 
well  filled  with  what  we  called  our  pollard,  and  she  closed 
it  securely  by  sewing  up  the  end.  I  was  now  to  contrive 
a  kind  of  press:  I  cut  a  long,  straight,  stout  branch,  from 
a  neighbouring  tree,  and  stripped  it  of  the  bark;  I  then 
placed  a  plank  across  the  table  we  had  fixed  between  the 
arched  roots  of  our  tree,  and  which  was  exactly  the  right 
height  for  my  purpose,  and  on  ^his  I  laid  the  bag;  I  put 
other  planks  again  upon  the  bag,  and  then  covered  all  with 
the  large  branch,  the  thickest  extremity  of  which  I  inserted 
under  an  arch,  while  to  the  other,  which  projected  beyond 
the  planks,  I  suspended  all  sorts  of  heavy  substances,  such 
as  lead,  our  largest  hammers  and  bars  of  iron,  which,  acting 
with  great  force  as  a  press  on  the  bag  of  manioc,  caused  the 


A'HE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  225 

sap  it  contained  to  issue  in  streams,  which  flowed  plentifully 
on  the  ground. 

Fritz. — This  machine  of  yours,  father,  though  simple,  is 
as  effectual  as  can  be  desired. 

Father. — Certainly.  It  is  the  simplest  lever  that  the  art 
of  mechanism  can  furnish,  and  may  be  made  extremely 
useful. 

Ernest. — I  thought  that  levers  were  never  used  but  for 
raising  heavy  masses,  such  as  blocks  of  stone,  and  things  of 
that  degree  of  weight;  I  had  no  notion  that  they  were  ever 
used  for  pressing. 

Father. — But  you  see  that  the  point  at  which  the  lever 
rests  on  the  planks  must  always  be  the  point  of  rest  or  com- 
pression; the  point  at  which  its  extremity  touches  the  roots 
of  the  tree  would  no  doubt  be  that  of  the  raising  power,  if 
the  root  was  not  too  strong  to  yield  to  the  point  of  the  lever; 
but  then  the  resistance  at  the  point  of  compression  or  rest  is 
still  stronger,  and  presses  effectually,  as  you  see,  the  con- 
tents of  the  bag.  The  Negroes,  however,  have  another 
manner  of  proceeding;  but  it  would  have  been  much  too 
tedious  in  the  process  for  us  to  imitate.  They  make  tresses 
of  the  bark  of  a  tree,  and  with  it  form  a  kind  of  basket  of 
tolerable  size;  they  fill  it  with  manioc,  and  press  it  so  tightly, 
that  the  baskets  become  shorter,  and  increase  in  breadth; 
they  then  hang  the  baskets  to  the  strongest  branches  of  trees, 
and  fasten  large  stones  to  them,  which  draw  the  baskets 
again  lengthways;  by  which  action  upon  the  manioc  the  sap 
runs  out  at  the  openings  left  by  the  tresses. 

Mother. — Can  one  make  no  use  of  this  sap? 

Father. — Certainly,  we  may:  the  same  Negroes  use  it  as 
food,  after  mixing  with  it  some  pepper;  and  when  they  can 
procure  them,  some  sea-crabs. 


226  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

Fritz. — Father,  it  no  longer  runs  a  single  drop;  may  we 
not  now  set  about  making  the  dough? 

Father. — I  have  no  objection;  but  as  there  are  some  poi- 
sonous kinds  of  manioc,  it  will  be  prudent  to  make  only  a 
small  cake  at  first,  by  way  of  experiment,  which  we  will  give 
;o  the  monkey  and  the  fowls,  and  wait  to  see  the  effect,  in- 
stead of  exhausting  our  whole  store  at  once. 

We  now  opened  the  bag,  and  took  out  a- small  quantity 
of  the  pollard,  which  already  was  dry  enough;  we  stirred  the 
rest  about  with  a  stick,  and  then  replaced  it  under  the  press. 
The  next  thing  was  to  fix  one  of  our  iron  plates,  which  was 
of  a  round  form,  and  a  little  hollow,  so  as  to  rest  upon  two 
blocks  of  stone  at  a  distance  from  each  other;  under  this  we 
lighted  a  large  fire,  and  when  the  iron  plate  was  completely 
heated,  we  placed  a  portion  of  the  dough  upon  it  with  a 
wooden  spade.  As  soon  as  the  cake  began  to  be  brown  un- 
derneath, it  was  turned,  that  the  other  side  might  be  baked 
also. 

Ernest. — O  how  nicely  it  smells!  what  a  pity  that  we  may 
not  eat  some  of  it  immediately! 

Father. — I  believe  you  might  safely  venture,  but  it  is  per- 
haps better  to  wait  till  the  evening,  and  run  no  greater  risk 
than  the  loss  of  one  or  two  of  our  fowjs  or  of  the  monkey; 
and  we  may  say  this  trial  of  the  cake  will  be  the  first  service 
he  has  rendered  us. 

As  soon  as  the  cake  was  cold,  we  broke  some  of  it  into 
crums,  and  gave  it  to  two  of  the  fowls,  and  a  larger  piece  to 
the  monkey,  who  nibbled  it  with  a  perfect  relish,  making  all 
the  time  a  thousand  grimaces,  while  the  boys  stood  by  envy^ 
ing  the  preference  he  enjoyed. 

Fritz. — Now  tell  me,  father,  how  the  savages  manage  to 
grate  their  manioc,  for  surely  they  have  not,  like  us,  an  instru- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON'.  .  22? 

merit  fitted  for  the  operation; — and  tell  me  also,  if  they  call 
their  composition  by  the  name  of  cake  or  bread,  as  we  do? 

Father. — The  savages  having  no  such  article  as  bread  in 
their  bill  of  fare,  have  consequently  no  word  in  their  Ian- 
gnage  to  express  it.  At  the  Antilles,  the  bread  from  the 
manioc  is  called  cassave ;  the  savages  make  a  kind  of  grater 
with  sharp  stones,  or  shells;  or  when  they  can  get  nails,  or 
which  they  set  a  high  value,  they  drive  them  into  the  end  ot 
a  plank,  and  rub  the  manioc  upon  it.  But  now,  I  pray  you,, 
good  wife,  give  us  quickly  our  potato  dinner,  and  we  will 
afterwards  resume  the  baking  trade. 

The  first  thing  after  dinner  was  to  visit  our  fowls.  Those 
which  had  eaten  the  manioc  were  in  excellent  condition,  and 
no  less  so  the  monkey. — "Now  then  to  the  bakehouse, 
young  ones,'*  said  I,  "as  fast  as  you  can  scamper." — The 
grated  manioc  was  soon  emptied  out  of  the  bag,  a  large  fire 
was  quickly  lighted,  and  I  placed  the  boys  where  a  flat  sur- 
face had  been  prepared  for  them,  and  gave  to  each  a  plate  of 
iron  and  the  quantity  of  a  cocoa-nut  full  to  make  a  cake  a 
piece,  and  they  were  to  try  who  could  succeed  the  best. 
They  were  ranged  in  a  half  circle  round  me,  that  they  might 
observe  how  I  proceeded,  and  adopt  the  same  method  for 
themselves.  The  result  was  not  discouraging  for  a  first 
experiment,  though  it  must  be  confessed  we  were  now  and 
then  so  unlucky  as  to  burn  a  cake;  but  there  was  not  a 
greater  number  of  these  than  served  to  feed  the  pigeons  and 
the  fowls,  which  hovered  round  us  to  claim  their  share  of 
the  treat.  My  little  rogues  could  not  resist  the  pleasure  of 
frequently  tasting  their  cake,  a  little  bit  at  a  time,  as  they 
went  on.  At  length  the  undertaking  was  complete;  the  cakes 
were  put  in  a  dish,  and  served,  in  company  with  a  handsome 
share  of  milk,  to  each  person;  and  with  this  addition  they  fur- 


228  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

nished  us  with  an  excellent  repast:  what  remained  we  dis- 
tributed among  our  animals  and  fowls. 

The  rest  of  the  day  was  employed  by  the  boys  in  making 
several  turns  with  their  wheelbarrows,  and  by  myself  in 
different  arrangements  in  which  the  ass  and  our  raft  had  a 
principal  share,  both  being  employed  in  drawing  to  Tent- 
House  the  remaining  articles  we  had  brought  from  the  ship. 
When  all  this  was  done  we  retired  to  rest,  having  first  made 
another  meal  on  our  cakes,  and  concluded  all  with  pious 
thanks  to  God  for  the  blessings  his  goodness  thought  fit  to 
bestow  upon  us. 

- 


CHAPTER  XX. 

The   Cracker  and  the  Pinnace. 

From  the  time  of  discovering  the  pinnace,  my  desire  of 
returning  to  the  vessel  grew  every  moment  more  irresistible; 
but  one  thing  I  saw  was  absolutely  necessary,  which  was, 
to  collect  all  my  hands  to  get  her  out  from  the  situation 
where  we  had  fourid  her.  I  therefore  thought  of  taking  with 
me  the  three  boys:  I  even  wished  that  my  wife  should  ac- 
company us;  but  she  had  been  seized  with  such  a  horror  of 
the  perfidious  element,  as  she  called  it,  the  sea,  that  she  as- 
sured me  the  very  attempt  would  make  her  ill  and  useless 
I  had  some  difficulty  to  prevail  upon  her  to  let  so  many  as 
three  of  the  children  go:  she  made  me  promise  to  return  the 
same  evening,  and  on  no  account  to  pass  another  night  on 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  229 

board  the  wreck;  and  to  this  I  was,  though  with  regret,  oblig- 
ed to  consent. 

After  breakfast  then,  we  prepared  for  setting  out.  The 
boys  were  gay  and  on  the  alert,  in  the  expectation  of  the 
pleasure  that  awaited  them,  particularly  Ernest,  who  had 
not  yet  made  a  single  voyage  with  us  to  the  vessel.  We 
took  with  us  an  ample  provision  of  boiled  potatoes  and 
cassave;  and  in  addition,  arms  and  weapons  of  every  kind. 
We  reached  Safety  Bay  without  any  remarkable  event: 
here  we  thought  it  prudent  to  put  on  our  cork  jackets; 
we  then  scattered  some  food  for  the  geese  and  ducks 
which  had  taken  up  their  abode  there,  and  soon  after 
stepped  gaily  into  our  tub-raft,  at  the  same  time  fastening 
the  new  boat  by  a  rope  to  her  stern,  so  that  she  could  be 
drawn  along.  We  put  out  for  the  current,  though  not  with- 
out considerable  fear  of  finding  that  the  wreck  had  disap- 
peared. We  soon,  however,  perceived  that  it  still  remained 
firm  between  the  rocks.  Having  got  on  board,  all  repaired, 
on  the  wings  of  curiosity  and  ardour,  to  that  part  of  the 
vessel  called  the  bulkhead,  which  contained  the  enviable 
prize,  the  pinnace.  On  further  observation,  it  appeared  to 
me  that  the  plan  we  had  formed  was  subject  to  at  least  two 
alarming  difficulties;  the  one  was  the  situation  of  the  pinnace 
in  the  ship;  and  the  other  was  the  size  and  weight  it 
would  necessarily  acquire  when  put  together.  The  enclos- 
ure which  contained  the  pinnace  was  in  the  interior  of  the 
ship,  and  timbers  of  prodigious  bulk  and  weight  separated  it 
from  the  breach,  and  in  this  part  of  the  deck  there  was  not 
sufficient  space  for  us  to  put  the  pinnace  together,  or  to  give 
her  room  when  done.  The  breach  also  was  too  narrow  and 
too  irregular  to  admit  of  her  being  launched  from  this  place, 
as  we  had  done  with  our  tub-raft.     In  short,  the   separate 


"230  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

pieces  of  the  pinnace  were  too  heavy  for  the  possibility  of 
our  removing  them  even  with  the  assistance  of  our  united 
strength.  What  therefore  was  to  be  done  ?  and  how  could 
we  meet  such  formidable  difficulties?  I  stood  on  the  spot  ab- 
sorbed in  reflection,  while  the  boys  were  running  from  place 
to  place,  conveying  every  thing  portable  they  could  find, 
on  board  the  raft. 

The  -cabinet  which  contained  the  pinnace  was  lighted  by 
several  small  fissures  in  the  timbers,  which  after  standing  in 
the  place  a  few  minutes  to  accustom  the  eye,  ennabled  one  to 
see  sufficiently  to  distinguish  objects.  I  discovered,  with 
pleasure,  that  all  the  pieces  of  which  she  was  composed  were 
so  accurately  arranged  and  numbered,  that  without  too  much 
presumption,  I  might  flatter  myself  with  the  hope  of  being 
able  effectually  to  collect  and  put  them  together,  if  I  could 
be  allowed  the  necessary  time,  and  could  procure  a  conven- 
ient place.  I  therefore,  in  spite  of  every  disadvantage,  de- 
cided on  the  undertaking;  and  we  immediately  set  about  it. 
We  proceeded  at  first  so  slowly  as  to  have  produced  dis- 
couragement, if  the  desire  of  possessing  so  admirable  a  little 
vessel,  quite  new,  perfectly  safe,  easy  to  conduct,  and  which 
might  at  some  future  day  be  the  means  of  our  deliverance, 
had  not  at  every  moment  inspired  us  with  new  strength  and 
ardour. 

Evening,  however,  was  fast  approaching,  and  we  had 
made  but  small  progress;  we  were  obliged  to  think  of  our 
promise  to  my  wife;  and  though  with  reluctance,  we  left  our 
occupation  and  re-embarked.  On  reaching  Safety  Bay,  we 
found  there  our  kind  steward  and  little  Francis;  they  had 
been,  during  the  day,  employed  in  arrangements  for  our 
living  at  Tent-House  as  long  as  we  should  have  occasion 
to   continue   the  excursions  to  the  vessel:  this  she  did  to 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  231 

shorten  the  length  of  the  voyage,  and  that  we  might  be 
always  in  sight  of  each  other.  In  return  for  her  kindness/I 
made  the  best  display  I  could  of  two  casks  of  salted  butter, 
three  of  flour,  some  small  bags  of  millet  seed  and  of  rice,  and 
some  other  articles  of  utility  and  comfort  for  our  establish- 
ment; and  the  whole  was  removed  to  our  storehouse  at  the 
rocks. 

We  passed  an  entire  week  in  this  arduous  undertaking  of 
the  pinnace.  I  embarked  every  morning  with  my  three  sons, 
and  returned  every  evening,  and  never  without  some  small 
addition  to  our  stores.  We  were  now  so  accustomed  to  this 
manner  of  proceeding,  that  my  wife  bade  us  good-by  with- 
out concern,  and  we,  on  our  parts,  left  Tent-House  without 
anxiety;  she  even  had  the  courage  to  go  several  times,  with 
no  companion  but  her  little  Francis,  to  Falcon's  Stream,  to 
feed  and  take  care  of  the  poultry,  and  to  bring  back  pota- 
toes for  our  use.  As  night  successively  returned,  we  had  a 
thousand  interesting  things  to  tell  each  other,  and  the  pleas- 
ure of  being  together  was  much  increased  by  these  short 
separations. 

At  length  the  pinnace  was  completed,  and  in  a  condition 
to  be  launched:  the  question  now  was,  how  to  manage  this 
remaining  difficulty.  She  was  an  elegant  little  vessel,  per- 
fect in  every  part:  she  had  a  small  neat  deck;  and  her  mast 
and  sails  were  no  less  exact  and  perfect  than  those  of  a  little 
brig.  It  was  probable  she  would  sail  well,  from  the  light- 
ness of  her  construction,  and  in  consequence  drawing  but 
little  water.  We  had  pitched  and  towed  all  the  seams,  that 
nothing  might  be  wanting  for  her  complete  appearance:  we 
had  even  taken  the  pains  of  further  embellishing,  by  mount- 
ing her  with  two  small  cannon  of  about  a  pound  weight;  and, 
in  imitation  of  larger  vessels,  had  fastened  them  to  the  deck 


232  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

with  chains.  But  in  spite  of  the  delight  we  felt  in  contem- 
plating a  work,  as  it  were,  of  our  own  industry;  the  great 
difficulty  still  remained:  the  said  commodious,  charming 
little  vessel,  still  stood  fast  enclosed  within  four  walls;  nor 
could  I  conceive  of  a  means  of  getting  her  out.  To  effect  a 
passage  through  the  outer  side  of  the  vessel,  by  means  of  our 
united  industry  in  the  use  of  all  the  utensils  we  had  secured, 
seemed  to  present  a  prospect  of  exertions  beyond  the  reach 
of  man,  even  if  not  attended  with  dangers  the  most  alarm- 
ing. We  examined  if  it  might  be  practicable  to  cut  away 
all  intervening  timbers,  to  which,  from  the  nature  of  the 
breach,  we  had  easier  access;  but  should  we  even  succeed 
in  this  attempt,  the  upper  timbers  being,  in  consequence  of 
the  inclined  position  of  the  ship,  on  a  level  with  the  water, 
our  labour  would  be  unavailing:  besides,  we  had  neither 
strength  nor  time  for  such  a  proceeding;  from  one  moment 
to  another,  a  storm  might  arise  and  ingulf  the  ship,  timbers, 
pinnace,  ourselves,  and  all.  Despairing,  then,  of  being  able 
to  find  a  means  consistent  with  the  sober  rules  of  art,  my 
impatient  fancy  inspired  the  thought  of  a  project,  which 
could  not  however  be  tried  without  hazards  and  dangers  of 
a  tremendous  nature. 

I  had  found  on  board  a  strong  iron  mortar,  such  as  is  used 
in  kitchens.  I  took  a  thick  oak  plank,  and  nailed  to  differ- 
ent parts  of  it  some  large  iron  hooks:  with  a  knife  I  cut  a 
groove  along  the  middle  of  the  plank.  I  sent  the  boys  to 
fetch  some  match-wood  from  the  hold,  and  I  cut  a  piece  suf- 
ficiently long  to  continue  burning  at  least  two  hours.  I 
placed  this  train  in  the  groove  of  my  plank:  I  filled  the  mor- 
tar with. gunpowder,  and  then  laid  the  plank,  thus  furnished 
upon  it,  having  previously  pitched  the  mortar  all  around; 
and,  lastly,  I  made  the  whole  fast  to  the  spot  with  strong 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON  233 

chains,  crossed  by  means  of  the  hooks  in  every  direction 
Thus  I  accomplished  a  sort  of  cracker,  from  which  I  expect- 
ed to  effect  a  happy  conclusion.  I  hung  this  machine  of 
mischief  to  the  side  of  the  bulk  head  next  the  sea,  having 
taken  previous  care  to  choose  a  spot  in  which  its  action 
could  not  affect  the  pinnace.  When  the  whole  was  arrang- 
ed, I  set  fire  to  the  match,  the  end  of  which  projected  far 
enough  beyond  the  plank  to  allow  us  sufficient  time  to  escape. 
I  now  hurried  on  board  the  raft,  into  which  I  had  previously 
sent  the  boys  before  applying  a  light  to  the  match;  and  who, 
though  they  had  assisted  in  forming  the  cracker,  had  no  sus- 
picion of  the  use  for  which  it  was  intended,  and  believing  all 
the  while  it  concealed  some  subject  of  amusement  for  their  next 
trip  to  the  vessel,  I  confess  I  had  purposely  avoided  giving 
them  the  true  explanation,  from  the  fear  of  the  entire  failure 
of  my  project,  or  that  the  vessel,  pinnace,  and  all  that  it 
contained,  might  in  consequence  be  blown  up  in  a  moment. 
I  had  naturally,  therefore,  some  reluctance  to  announce  my- 
self before  the  time  as  the  author  of  so  many  disasters. 

On  our  arrival  at  Tent-House,  I  immediately  put  the  raft 
in  a  certain  order,  that  she  might  be  in  readiness  to  return 
speedily  to  the  wreck,  when  the  noise  produced  by  the  crack- 
er should  have  informed  me  that  my  scheme  had  taken  ef- 
fect. We  set  busily  to  work  in  emptying  her;  and  during 
the  occupation,  our  ears  were  assailed  with  the  noise  of  an 
explosion  of  such  violence,  that  my  wife  and  the  boys,  who 
were  ignorant  of  the  cause,  were  so  dreadfully  alarmed  as 
instantly  to  abandon  their  employment.  ''What  can  it  be? 
— what  is  the  matter? — what  can  have  happened?"  cried  all 
at^  once.  "It  must  be  cannon.  It  is  perhaps  the  captain 
and  the  ship's  company  who  have  found  their  way  hither! 
Or  can  it  be  some  vessel  in  distress?  Oan  we  go  to  its 
relief?"  U 


234  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON'. 

Mother. — The  sound  conies  in  the.  direction  of  the  wreck: 
perhaps  she  has  blown  up. — From  the  bottom  of  her  heart 
she  made  this  suggestion,  for  she  desired  nothing  more 
earnestly  than  that  the  vessel  should  be  annihilated,  and 
thus  an  end  be  put  to  our  repeated  visits. 

Father. — If  this  is  the  case,  said  I,  we  had  better  return 
immediately,  and  convince  ourselves  of  the  fact?  Who  will 
be  of  the  party? 

"I,  I,  I/7  cried  the  boys;  and  the  three  young  rogues- 
lost  not  a  moment  in  jumping  into  their  tubs,  whither  I  soon 
followed  them,  after  having  whispered  a  few  words  to  my 
wife,  somewhat  tending  to  explain,  but  still  more  to  tran- 
quillize her  mind  during  the  trip  we  had  now  to  engage  in> 

We  rowed  out  of  the  bay  with  more  rapidity  than  on  any 
former  occasion;  curiosity  gave  strength  to  our  arms* 
When  the  vessel  was  in  sightr  I  observed  with  pleasure  that 
no  change  had  taken  place  in  the  part  of  her  which  faced 
Tent-House,  and  that  no  sign  of  smoke  appeared:  we  ad- 
vanced, therefore,  in  excellent  spirits;  but  instead  of  rowing, 
as  usual,  straight  to  the  breach,  we  proceeded  round  to  the 
side,  on  the  inside  of  which  we  had  placed  the  cracker. 
The  horrible  scene  of  devastation  we  had  caused  now  broke 
upon  our  sight.  The  greater  part  of  the  ship's  side  was 
shivered  to  pieces;  innumerable  splinters  covered  the  sur- 
face of  the  water;  the  whole  exhibited  a  scene  of  terrible 
destruction,  in  the  midst  of  which  presented  itself  our  elegant 
pinnace,  entirely  free  from  injury!  I  could  not  refrain  from 
the  liveliest  exclamations  of  joy,  which  excited  the  surprise 
of  the  boys,  who  had  felt  the  disposition  such  a  spectacle 
naturally  inspired,  of  being  dejected.  They  fixed  their  eyes 
upon  me  with  the  utmost  astonishment. — "Now  then  she  is 
ours!"  cried  I — "the  elegant  little  pinnace  is  ours!  for  no- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  235 

thing  is  now  more  easy  than  to  launch  her.  Come,  boys, 
jump  upon  her  deck,  and  let  us  see  how  quickly  we  can  get 
her  down  upon  the  water." 

Fritz. — Ah!  now  I  understand  you,  father,  you  have 
yourself  blown  up  the  side  of  the  ship'with  that  machine  you 
■contrived  in  our  last  visit,  that  we  might  be  able  to  get  out 
the  pinnace;  but  how  does  it  happen  that  so  much  of  the 
•ship  is  blown  away  ? 

Father.  —  I  will  explain  all  this  to  you  when  I  have  con- 
vinced myself  that  the  pinnace  is  not  injured,  and  that  there 
is  no  danger  of  any  of  the  fire  remaining  on  board;  let  us 
well  examine.  We  entered  by  the  new  breach,  and  had 
soon  reason  to  be  satisfied  that  the  pinnace  had  wholly  es- 
caped from  injury,  and  that  the  tire  was  entirely  extin- 
guished. The  mortar,  however,  and  pieces  of  the  chain, 
had  been  driven  forcibly  into  the  opposite  side  of  the  enclos- 
ure. Having  now  every  reason  to  be  satisfied  and  tranquil, 
I  explained  to  the  boys  the  nature  of  a  cracker,  the  manner 
of  its  operation,  and  the  important  service  for  which  I  was 
indebted  to  the  old  mortar. 

I  then  examined  the  breach  we  had  thus  effected,  and  next 
the  pinnace.  I  perceived  that  it  would  be  easy,  with  the 
help  of  the  crow  and  the  lever,  to  lower  her  into  the  water. 
In  putting  her  together,  I  had  used  the  precaution  of  placing 
her  keel  on  rollers,  that  we  might  not  experience  the  same 
difficulty  as  we  had  formerly  done  in  launching  our  tub-raft. 
Before  letting  her  go,  however,  I  fastened  the  end  of  a  long 
thick  rope  to  her  head,  and  the  other  end  to  the  most  solid 
part  of  the  wreck,  for  fear, of  her  being  carried  out  too  far. 
We  put  our  whole  ingenuity  and  strength  to  this  undertaking, 
and  soon  enjoyed  the  pleasure  of  seeing  our  pretty  pinnace 
descend  gracefully  into  the  sea;  the  rope  keeping  her  suffi- 


<236  TH£     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON*, 

ciently  near,  and  enabling  us  to  draw  her  close  to  the  spot 
where  I  was  loading  the  tub-boat,  and  where,  for  that  pur- 
pose, I  had  lodged  a  pulley  on  a  projecting  beam,  from  which 
I  was  enabled  also  to  advance  with  the  completing  of  the 
necessary  masts  and  siils  for  our  new  barge.  I  endeavour- 
ed to  recollect  minutely  all  the  information  I  had  ever  pos- 
sessed on  the  art  of  equipping  a  vessel;  and  our  pinnace  was 
shortly  in  a  condition  to  set  sail. 

On  this  occasion,  a  spirit  of  military  affairs  was  awakened 
in  the  minds  of  my  young  group,  which  was  never  after  ex- 
tinguished. We  were  masters  of  a  vessel  mounted  with  two 
cannon,  and  furnished  amply  with  guns  and  pistols!  This 
was  at  once  to  be  invincible,  and  in  a  coridition  for  resisting 
and  destroying  the  largest  fleet  the  savages  could  bring  upon 
us!  In  the  height  of  exultation,  it  was  even  almost  wished 
they  might  assail  us!  For  my  own  part,  I  answered  their 
young  enthusiasm  with  pious  prayers  that  we  might  ever 
escape  such  a  calamity  as  the  being  compelled  to  use  our 
fire-arms.  Night  surprised  us  before  we  had  finished  our 
work,  and  we  accordingly  prepared  for  our  return  to  Tent- 
House,  after  drawing  the  pinnace  close  under  the  vessel's 
side.  We  arrived  in  safety,  and  took  great  care,  as  had 
been  previously  agreed  on,  not  to  mention  our  new  and  in- 
valuable booty  to  the  good  mother,  till  we  could  surprise  her 
with  the  sight  of  it  in  a  state  of  entire  completeness.  In 
answer,  therefore,  to  her  inquiries  as  to  the  noise  she  heard, 
we  told  her  that  a  barrel  of  gunpowder  had  taken  fire,  and 
had  shivered  to  pieces  a  small  part  of  the  ship. 

Two  whole  days  more  were  spent  in  completely  equipping' 
and  loading  the  beautiful  little  barge  we  had  now  secured. 
When  she  was  ready  for  sailing,  I  found  it  impossible  to  re- 
sist the  earnest  importunity  of  the  boys,  who,  as  a  recompense 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    R0BINS0X.  237 

for  the  industry  and  discretion  they  had  employed,  claimed 
my  permission  to  salute  their  mother,  on  their  approach  to 
Tent-House,  with  two  discharges  of  cannon.  These  accord- 
ingly were  loaded,  and  the  two  youngest  placed  themselves, 
with  a  lighted  match  in  hand,  close  to  the  touch-holes,  to  be 
in  readiness.  Fritz  stood  at  the  mast,  to  manage  the  ropes 
and  cables,  while  I  took  my  station  at  the  rudder.  These 
matters  being  adjusted,  we  put  off  with  sensations  of  lively 
joy,  which  was  demonstrated  by  loud  huzzas  and  suitable 
gesticulation.  The  wind  was  favourable,  and  so  brisk,  that 
we  glided  with  the  rapidity  of  a  bird  along  the  mirror  of  the 
waters;  and  while  my  young  ones  were  transported  with 
pleasure  by  the  velocity  of  the  motion,  I  could  not  myself 
refrain  from  shuddering  at  the  thought  of  some  possible  dis- 
aster. 

Our  old  friend  the  tub-raft  had  been  deeply  loaded,  and 
fastened  to  the  pinnace,  and  it  now  followed  as  an  accom- 
panying boat  to  a  superior  vessel.  We  took  down  our 
large  sail  as  soon  as  we  found  ourselves  at  the  entrance  of 
Safety  Bay,  to  "have  the  greater  command  in  steering  the 
pinnace;  and  soon  the  smaller  ones  were  lowered  one  by 
one,  that  we  might  the -more  securely  avoid  being  thrown 
with  violence  upon  the  rocks  so  prevalent  along  the  coast: 
thus,  proceeding  at  a  slower  rate,  we  had  greater  facilities 
for  managing  the  important  affair  of  the  discharge  of  the 
cannon.  Arrived  within  a  certain  distance — "Fire!"  cried 
Commander  Fritz.  The  rocks  behind  Tent-House  return- 
ed the  sound. — " Fire!''''  said  Fritz  again — Ernest  and  Jack 
obeyed,  and  the  echoes  again  majestically  replied.  Fritz 
at  the  same  moment  had  discharged  his  two  pistols,  and  all 
joined  instantly  in  three  loud  huzzas. 

"Welcome!  welcome!  dear  ones,"  was  the  answer  from 


238      •  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

the  anxious  mother,  almost  breathless  with  astonishment 
and  joy!  "Welcome!  "  cried  also  little  Francis,  with  his 
feeble  voice,  as  he  stood  clinging  to  her  side,  and  not  well 
knowing  whether  he  was  to  be  sad  or  merry !  We  now  tried 
to  push  to  shore  with  our  oars  in  a  particular  direction,  that 
we  might  have  the  protection  of  a  projecting  mass  of  rocks, 
and  my  wife  and  little  Francis  hastened  to  the  spot  to  re- 
ceive us:  "Ah,  dear  deceitful  ones!"  cried  she,  throwing 
herself  upon  my  neck,  and  heartily  embracing  me,  what  a 
fright  have  you,  and  your  cannon,  and  your  little  ship, 
thrown  me  into!  I  saw  it  advancing  rapidly  towards  us, 
and  was  unable  to  conceive  from  whence  it  could  come,  or 
what  it  might  have  on  board:  I  stole  with  Francis  behind 
the  rocks,  and  when  I  heard  the  firing,  I  was  near  sinking 
to  the  ground  with  terror;  if  I  had  not  the  moment  after 
heard  your  voices,  God  knows  where  we  should  have  run 
to — but  come,  the  cruel  moment  is  now  over,  and  thanks  to 
Heaven,  I  have  you  once  again  in  safety!  But  tell  me 
where  you  got  so  unhoped-for  a  prize  as  this  neat  charming 
little  vessel?  In  good  truth,  it  would  almost  tempt  me  once 
more  to  venture  on  a  sea-voyage,  especially  if  she  would 
promise  to  convey  us  back  to  our  dear  country!  I  foresee 
of  what  use  she  will  be  to  us,  and  for  her  sake  I  think  that 
I  must  try  to  forgive  the  many  sins  of  absence  you  have 
committed  against  me." 

Fritz  now  invited  his  mother  to  get  on  board,  and  gave 
her  his  assistance.  When  they  had  all  stepped  upon  the 
deck,  they  entreated  for  permission  to  salute,  by  again  dis- 
charging the  cannon,  and  at  the  same  moment  to  confer  on 
the  pinnace  the  name  of  their  mother — The  Elizabeth. 

My  wife  was  particularly  gratified  by  these  our  late  ad- 
ventures; she  applauded  our  skill  and  perseverance:   "but 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  239 

do  not,"  said  she,  "imagine  that  I  bestow  so  much  com- 
mendation without  the  hope  of  some  return  in  kind:  on  the 
contrary,  it  is  now  my  turn  to  claim  from  you,  for  myself 
and  little  Francis,  the  same  sort  of  agreeable  recompense; 
for  we  have  not,  I  assure  you,  remained  idle  while  the  rest 
were  so  actively  employed  for  the  common  benefit. — No, 
not  so;  little  Francis  and  his  mother  found  means  to  be 
doing  something  also,  though  not  at  this  moment  prepared 
to  furnish  such  unquestionable  proofs  as  you,  by  your  sal- 
utations of  cannon,  he;  b.ut  wait  a  little,  good  friends, 
and  our  proofs  shall  hereafter  be  apparent  in  some  dishes 
of  excellent  vegetables  which  we  shall  be  able  to  regale 
you  v/ith. — It  depends,  to  say  the  truth,  only  on  yourselves, 
dear  ones,  to  go  with  me  and  see  what  we  have  done." 

We  did  not  hesitate  to  comply,  and  jumped  briskly  out 
of  the  pinnace  for  the  purpose.  Taking  her  little  coad- 
jutor Francis  by  the  hand,  she  led  the  way,  and  we  follow- 
ed in  the  gayest  mood  imaginable.  She  conducted  us  up 
an  ascent  of  one  of  our  rocks,  and  stopping  at  the  spot 
where  the  cascade  is  formed  from  Jackall's  River,  she  dis- 
played to  our  astonished  eyes  a  handsome  kitchen-garden, 
laid  out  properly  in  beds  and  walks,  and,  as  she  told  us, 
everywhere  sowed  with  the  seed  of  useful  plants. 

"This,"  said  she,  "  is  the  pretty  exploit  we  have  been 
engaged  in,  if  you  will  kindly  think  so  of  it.  In  this  spot 
the  earth  is  so  light,  being  principally  composed  of  decayed 
leaves,  that  Francis  and  I  had  no  difficulty  in  working  in  it, 
and  then  dividing  it  into  different  compartments:  one  for  po- 
tatoes, one  for  manioc,  and  other  smaller  shares  for  lettuces 
of  various  kinds,  not  forgetting  to  leave  a  due  proportion  to 
receive  some  plants  of  the  sugar-cane.  You,  dear  husband, 
and  Fritz,  will  easily  find  means  to  conduct  sufficient  water 


240  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

hither  from  the  cascade,  by  means  of  pipes  of  bamboo,  to 
keep  the  whole  in  health  and  vigour;  and  we  shall  have  a 
double  source  of  pleasure  from  the  general  prosperity;  for 
both  the  eye  and  the  palate  will  be  gratified.  But  you 
have  not  yet  seen  all:  there,  on  the  slope  of  the  rock,  I 
have  transplanted  some  plants  of  the  ananas.  Between 
these  I  have  sowed  some  melon  seeds,  which  cannot  fail  to 
succeed,  thus  securely  sheltered,  and  in  so  warm  a  soil: 
here  is  a  plot  allotted  to  pease  and  beans,  and  this  other 
for  all  sorts  of  cabbage.  Round  each  bed  or  plot  I  ha37e 
sowed  seeds  of  maize,  on  account  of  its  tall  and  bushy  form, 
to  serve  as  a  border,  which  at  the  same  time  will  protect 
my  young  plants  from  the  scorching  heat  of  the  sun." 

I  stood  transported,  in  the  midst  of  so  perfect  an  exhibi- 
tion of  the  kind  zeal  and  persevering  industry  of  this  most 
amiable  of  women!  I  could  only  exclaim,  that  I  should 
never  have  believed  in  the  possibility  of  such  a  labour  in 
so  short  a  time,  and  particularly  with  so  much  privacy  as  to 
leave  me  wholly  unsuspicious  of  the  existence  of  such  a 
project. 

Mother. — To  confess  the  truth,  I  scarcely  myself  expect- 
ed to  succeed,  so  I  resolved  to  be  silent,  to  avoid  being  put 
to  the  blush  for  my  presumption.  But  as  I  found  my  little 
calculations  answer  better  than  I  expected,  I  was  encourag- 
ed, and  the  hope  of  suprising  you  so  agreeably  gave  me  new 
strength  and  activity.  I,  however,  was  not  without  my 
suspicions  that  your  daily  visits  to  the  wreck  were  connect- 
ed with  some  great  mystery,  which  at  a  certain  time  you 
would  unfold. — So,  mystery  for  mystery,  thought  I;  and 
thus  my  love,  it  has  turned  out.  Though  acting  in  different 
directions,  one  only  object  has  been  our  mutual  aim — the 
substantial  good  of  our  beloved  companions  of  the  desert! 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  241 

After  a  few  jocose  remarks,  with  which  we  closed  this 
conversation,  we  moved  towards  Tent-House.  This  was 
one  of  our  happiest  days;  for  we  were  all  satisfied  with  our- 
selves and  with  each  other;  we  had  conferred  and  received 
benefits;  and  I  led  my  children  to  observe  the  goodness  of 
Providence,  who  renders  even  labour  a  source  of  enjoyment, 
and  makes  our  own  happiness  result  from  that  of  the  objects 
of  our  affection,  and  our  pride  to  arise  from  the  commen- 
dations of  which  those  objects  may  be  deserving. 

"I  had  almost  forgot,  though,"  said  my  wife,  after  a 
short  pause,  "  one  little  reproach  I  had  to  make  you:  your 
trips  to  the  vessel  have  made  you  neglect  the  bundle  of  pre- 
cious fruit-saplings  we  laid  together  in  mould  at  Falcon's 
Stream;  I  fear  they  by  this  time  must  be  dying  for  want  of 
planting,  though  I  took  care  to  v/ater  and  cover  them  with 
branches.      Let  us  go,  my  love,  and  see  about  them." 

I  readily  consented,  as  many  other  matters  required  our 
presence  at  Falcon's  Stream.  We  had  now  in  possession 
the  greater  part  of  the  cargo  of  the  vessel ;  but  almost  the 
whole  of  these  treasures  were  at  present  in  the  open  air, 
and  liable  to  injury  from  both  sun  and  rain. 

My  wife  prepared  with  alertness  for  our  walk.  We 
hastened  to  unload  the  boat,  and  to  place  the  cargo  safely 
under  shelter  along  with  our  other  stores. 

The  pinnace  was  anchored  on  the  shore,  and  fastened 
with  a  rope,  by  her  head,  to  a  stake.  When  all  our  stores 
were  thus  disposed  of,  we  began  our  journey  to  Falcon's 
Stream,  but  not  empty-handed;  we  took  with  us  everything 
that  seemed  to  be  absolutely  wanted  for  comfort;  and  when 
brought  together,  it  was  really  so  much,  that  both  ourselves 
and  our  beasts  of  burden  had  no  easy  task  to  perform. 

W 


242  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

Gymnastic    Exercises;    various    Discoveries;    singular   Ani- 
mals, Sfc. 

I  recommended  to  my  sons  to  resume  the  exercise*  of  the 
shooting  of  arrows;  for  I  had  an  extreme  solicitude  about 
their  preserving  and  increasing  their  bodily  strength  and 
agility.  Nothing  tends  more  to  the  extinction  of  personal 
courage  in  a  human  being,  than  the  consciousness  of  want- 
ing that  strength  of  limb,  or  that  address  which  may  be  ne- 
cessary to  aid  us  in  defending  ourselves,  or  in  escaping  from 
dangers.  On  this  occasion,  I  added  the  exercises  of  run- 
ning, jumping,  getting  up  trees,  both  by  means  of  climbing 
by  the  trunk,  or  by  a  suspended  rope,  as  sailors  are  obliged 
to  do  to  get  to  the  mast-head.  We  began  at  first  by  mak- 
ing knots  in  the  rope,  at  a  foot  distance  from  each  other; 
then  we  reduced  the  number  of  knots,  and  before  we  left  off 
we  contrived  to  succeed  without  any.  I  next  taught  them 
an  exercise  of  a  different  nature,  which  was  to  be  effected 
by  means  of  two  balls  made  of  lead,  fastened  one  to  each 
end  of  a  string  about  a  fathom  in  length.  While  I  was  pre- 
paring this  machinery,  all  eyes  were  fixed  upon  me. — 
"What  can  it  be  intended  for?"  cried  one:  "How  can 
we  use  it?"  asked  another:  "  Will  it  soon  be  ready?"  con- 
tinued a  third. 

"  I  am  endeavouring,"  said  I,  "to  imitate  the  arms  used 
by  a  valiant  nation,  remarkable  for  their  skill  in  the  chase, 
and  whom  you  all  must  have  heard  of:  I  mean  the  Patago- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  243 

nians,  inhabitants  of  the  most  southern  point  of  America;  but, 
instead  of  balls,  which  they  are  not  able  to  procure,  they  tie 
two  heavy  stones,  one  at  each  end  of  a  cord,  but  consider- 
ably longer  than  the  one  I  am  working  with:  every  Pata- 
gonian  is  armed  with  this  simple  instrument,  which  they 
use  with  singular  dexterity.  If  they  desire  to  kill  or  wound 
an  enemy,  or  an  animal,  they  fling  one  of  the  ends  of  this 
cord  at  him,  and  begin  instantly  to  draw  it  back  by  the 
other,  which  they  keep  carefully  in  their  hand,  to  be  ready 
for  another  throw  if  necessary:  but  if  they  wish  to  take  an 
animal  alive,  and  without  hurting  it,  they  possess  the  sin- 
gular art  of  throwing  it  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  it  run  sev- 
eral times  round  the  neck  of  the  prey,  occasioning  a  per- 
plexing tightness;  they  then  throw  the  second  stone,  and 
with  so  certain  an  aim,  that  they  scarcely  ever  miss  their 
object:  the  operation  of  the  second  is,  the  so  twisting  itself 
about  the  animal  as  to  impede  his  progress,  even  though  he 
were  at  a  full  gallop.  The  stones  continue  turning,  carry- 
ing with  them  the  cord:  the  poor  animal  is  at  length  so  en- 
tangled, that  he  can  neither  advance  nor  retire,  and  thus 
falls  a  prey  to  the  enemy." 

This  description  was  heard  with  much  interest  by  the 
boys,  who  now  all  entreated  I  would  that  instant  try  the  ef- 
fect of  my  own  instrument  upon  a  small  trunk  of  a  tree 
which  we  saw  at  a  certain  distance.  My  throws  entirely 
succeeded;  and  the  string  with  the  balls  at  the  end  so  com- 
pletely surrounded  the  tree,  that  the  skill  of  the  Patagonian 
huntsmen  required  no  further  illustration.  Each  of  the  boys 
must  then  needs  have  a  similar  instrument;  and  in  a  short 
time  Fritz  became  quite  expert  in  the  art,  as  indeed  he  was 
in  every  kind  of  exercise  that  required  strength  or  address: 
he  was  not  only  the  most  alert  of  my  children,  but  being  the 


$44  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

eldest,  his  muscles  were  more  formed,  and  his  intelligence 
was  more  developed,  than  could  yet  be  expected  in  the  other 
three. 

The  next  morning  as  I  was  dressing,  I  remarked  from 
my  window  in  the  tree,  that  the  sea  was  violently  agitated, 
and  the  waves  swelled  with  the  wind.  I  rejoiced  to  find  my- 
self in  safety  in  my  home,  and  that  the  day  had  not  been 
destined  for  out-of-door  occupation.  I  observed  then  to  my 
wife,  that  I  should  not  leave  her  the  whole  day,  and  there- 
fore was  ready  to  execute  any  thing  she  found  wanting  in 
our  domestic  arrangement.  We  now  fell  to  a  more  minute 
examination  than  I  had  hitherto  had  time  for,  of  all  our  vari- 
ous possessions  at  Falcon's  Stream.  She  showed  me  many 
things  she  had  herself  found  means  to  add  to  them  during 
my  repeated  absences  from  home:  among  these  was  a  pair 
of  young  pigeons  which  had  been  lately  hatched,  and  were 
already  beginning  to  try  their  wings,  while  their  mother  was 
again  sitting  on  her  eggs.  From  these  we  passed  to  the  fruit 
trees  we  had  laid  in  earth  to  be  planted,  and  which  were  in  real 
need  of  our  assistance.  I  immediately  set  myself  to  prevent 
so  important  an  injury.  I  had  promised  the  boys,  the. eve- 
ning before,  to  go  all  together  to  the  wood  of  gourds,  to 
provide  ourselves  with  vessels  of  different  sizes  to  keep  our 
provisions  in:  they  were  enchanted  with  the  idea,  but  I  bar- 
gained that  they  must  first  assist  me  to  plant  all  the  young 
trees;  which  was  no  sooner  said  than  set  about. 

When  we  had  finished,  the  evening  was  too  far  advanc- 
ed for  so  long  a  walk.  By  sunrise  the  next  morning  all 
were  on  foot;  for  nothing  can  exceed  the  alertness  of 
young  persons  who  act  in  expectation  of  a  pleasurable 
change  of  scene.  The  ass,  harnessed  to  the  sledge,  play- 
ed the  principal  character:  his  office  was  to  carry  our  din- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  245 

ners,  a  bottle  of  Canary  wine,  and  some  powder  and  shot, 
and  to  bring  home  our  service  of  empty  gourds.  Turk,  ac- 
cording to  custom,  led  the  way  as  our  advanced  guard: 
next  followed  the  three  eldest  boys,  equipped  for  sporting: 
after  them,  the  tender  mother,  leading  the  little  one:  and 
Flora  brought  up  the  rear,  with  the  monkey  on  her  back,  to 
which  the  boys  had  given  the  name  of  Knips.  On  this  occa- 
sion I  took  with  me  a  double-barrelled  gun,  loaded  on  the 
one  side  with  shot  for  game,  and,  on  the  other  with  ball,  in 
case  of  meeting  with  an  enemy. 

In  this  manner  we  set  out,  full  of  good-humour  and  high 
spirits,  from  Falcon's  Stream.  Turning  round  Flamingo 
Marsh,  we  soon  reached  the  pleasant  spot  which  before  had 
so  delighted  us.  Fritz  took  a  direction  a  little  further  from 
the  seashore;  and  sending  Turk  into  the  tall  grass,  he  fol- 
lowed himself,  and  both  disappeared.  Soon,  eager  for  sport,, 
we  heard  Turk  barking  loud;  a  large  bird  sprung  up,  and  al- 
most at  the  same  moment  a  shot  from  Fritz  brought  it  down: 
but  though  wounded  it  was  not  killed;  it  raised  itself,  and 
got  off  with  incredible  swiftness,  not  by  flying  but  by  run- 
ning. Turk  followed,  and  seizing  the  bird,  held  it  fast  till 
Fritz  came  up.  Now  a  different  scene  succeeded  from  that 
which  took  place  at  the  capture  of  the  flamingo.  The  legs  of 
that  bird  are  long  and  weak,  and  it  was  able  to  make  but  a 
poor  resistance.  The  present  captive  was  large  in  size,  and 
strong;  it  struck  the  dogs,  or  whoever  came  near,  with  its 
legs,  with  so  much  force,  that  Fritz,  who  had  received  a  blow 
or  two,  dared  not  again  approach  the  enemy.  Fortunately  I 
reached  the  spot  in  time  to  give  assistance,  and  was  pleased 
to  see  that  it  was  a  female  bustard  of  the  largest  size.  I  had 
long  wished  to  possess  and  to  tame  a  bird  of  this  species  for 
our  poultry-yard,  though  I  foresaw  that  it  would  be  some- 
what difficult. 


246  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

To  secure  the  bird  without  injuring  it,  I  threw  my  pocket 
handkerchief  over  the  head  of  the  bustard;  it  could  not  dis- 
engage itself,  and  its  efforts  only  served  to  entangle  it  the 
more.  As  it  could  not  now  see  me,  I  got  near  enough  to  pass 
a  string  with  a  running  knot  over  its  legs,  which,  for  the 
present,  I  drew  tight,  to  prevent  further  mischief  from  such 
powerful  weapons.  I  gently  released  its  wing  from  Turk's 
mouth,  and  tied  it,  with  its  fellow,  close  to  the  bird's  body. 
In  short,  the  bustard  was  our  own!  and  that  in  a  condition 
to  promise  its  preservation  when  we  should  once  have  con-, 
veyed  it  to  Falcon's  Stream,  and  could  administer  care  and 
kindness  to  compensate  for  the  rough  treatment  it  had  ex- 
perienced at  our  hands. 

We  removed  the  prisoner  to  the  spot  where  our  com- 
panions had  been  waiting  our  rettlrn.  Ernest  and  Jack  ran 
briskly  forward,  bawling  out,  "  Oh,  what  a  handsome  bird! 
And  what  a  size!  What  beautiful  feathers!" — "I  think  it  is  a 
female  bustard,  "said  Ernest.  "And  you  are  right,"  answered 
I;  "  its  flesh  is  excellent,  having  somewhat  of  the  flavour 
of  the  turkey,  to  which  it  also  in  some  other  respects  has 
resemblance.  Let  us  endeavour  to  tame  and  preserve  it 
by  all  means.  We  have  gained  for  our  poultry-yard  a  bird 
of  rare  value  on  account  of  its  size,  which  will,  it  may  be 
hoped  attract  its  mate,  and  thus  furnish  us  with  a  brood  of  its 
species." 

I  now  fixed  the  bustard  on  the  sledge,  in  a  posture  the 
most  favourable  to  its  ease.  As  we  advanced  on  our  way, 
I  was  frequently  obliged  to  use  the  hatchet  to  make  a  free  pas- 
sage for  the  ass  in  the  tall  grass.  The  heat  also  increased, 
and  we  were  all  complaining  of  thirst,  when  Ernest,  whose 
discoveries  were  generally  of  a  kind  to  be  of  use,  made 
one  of  a  most  agreeable  nature.  He  has  already  been  de- 
scribed as  a  lover  of  natural  history,  and  now  he  had  gath- 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON.  247 

ered,  as  he  proceeded,  such  plants  as  he  met  with,  with  the 
view  of  adding  to  his  stock  of  knowledge.  He  found  a  kind  of 
hollow  stalk  of  some  height,  which  grew  at  the  foot  of  trees, 
and  entangled  our  feet  in  walking.  He  cut  one  of  them, 
and  was  surprised  to  see  a  drop  of  pure  fresh  water  issue  at 
the  place  where  thp  knife  had  been  applied:  he  showed  it  to 
us,  put  it  to  his  lips,  and  found  it  pure,  and  felt  much  regret 
that  there  was  no  more.  I  then  fell  to  examining  the  phe- 
nomenon myself,  and  soon  perceived  that  the  want  of  air 
prevented  a  more  considerable  issue  of  water.  I  made  some 
more  incisions,  and  presently  water  flowed  out  as  if  from  a 
small  conduit.  Ernest,  and  after  him  the  other  boys, 
quenched  their  thirst  at  this  new  fountain,  in  the  completest 
manner.  I  tried  the  experiment  of  dividing  the  plants  long- 
ways, and  they  soon  gave  out  water  enough  to  supply  even 
the  ass,  the  monkey,  and  the  bustard.  For  my  own  part, 
touched  with  deep  gratitude  for  the  goodness  of  God  towards 
me  and  my  beloved  family,  I  raised  my  eyes  to  Heaven  in 
thankfulness. 

We  were  still  compelled  to  fight  our  way  through  thick 
bushes,  till  at  length  arrived  at  the  wood  of  gourds,  we 
were  not  long  in  finding  the  spot  were  Fritz  and  I  had  once 
before  enjoyed  so  agreeable  a  repose.  Our  companions  had 
not  soon  done  admiring  and  wondering  at  the  magnificence 
of  the  trees  they  now  beheld,  and  the  prodigious  size  of  the 
fruit  which  grew  upon  the  trunk. 

Jack  and  Ernest  employed  themselves  in  collecting 
dried  branches  and  flints,  while  their  mother  was  occupied 
in  attending  to  the  poor  bustard.  She  remarked  to  me,  that 
it  was  cruel  to  keep  her  any  longer  blinded,  and  her  legs 
tied  together  on  the  sledge.  To  please  her,  I  took  off  the 
covering  and  loosened  the  string  on  the  legs,  but  still  left 


248  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

it  so  as  to  be  a  guard  against  its  running  away,  or  inflicting 
blows  on  those  who  might  approach.  I  tied  her  by  a  long 
string  to  the  trunk  of  a  tree,  that  she  might  relieve  herself 
by  walking  about. 

My  wife  now  gave  us  notiqe,  that  she  should  want  some 
vessels  to  contain  milk,  a  large  flat  spoon  to  cut  out  butter 
by  pieces,  and  next,  some  pretty  plates  for  serving  it  at 
table,  made  from  the  gourd  rinds. 

Father. — You  are  perfectly  reasonable  in  your  demand, 
dear  wife,  said  I;  and,  on  my  part,  I  require  some  nests  for 
the  pigeons,  some  baskets  for  eggs,  and  some  hives  for 
bees. 

All. — Oh  yes,  these  things  must  all  be  made,  we  will  set 
earnestly  to  work. 

Jack. — But  first,  father,  tell  us  how  to  divide  one  of  the 
rinds  with  a  string;. 

I  made  them  gather  or  collect,  till  we  were  in  possess- 
ion of  a  sufficient  number.  We  now  began  our  work:  some 
had  to  cut ;  others  to  saw,  scoop  out,  and  model  into  agreeable 
forms.  It  was  a  real  pleasure  to  witness  the  activity  exhib- 
ited in  this  our  manufacture  of  porcelain:  each  tried  what 
specimens  he  could  present  for  the  applause  of  his  compan- 
ions. For  my  own  part,  I  made  a  pretty  basket,  large 
enough  to  carry  eggs,  with  one  of  the  gourds,  leaving  an  arch 
at  the  top  to  serve  as  a  cover.  I  likewise  accomplished  a 
certain  number  of  vessels,  also  with  covers,  fit  to  hold  our 
milk,  and  then  some  spoons  to  skim  the  cream.  My  next 
attempt  was  some  bottles  large  enough  to  hold  fresh  water, 
and  these  occasioned  me  more  trouble  than  all  the  rest.  It 
was  necessary  to  empty  the  gourd  through  the  small  open- 
ing of  the  size  of  one's  finger,  which  I  had  cut  in  it;  I  was 
obliged,  after  loosening  the  contents  with  a  stick,  to  get  them 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  249 

out  by  friction  with  shot  and  water  well  shaken  on  the  in- 
side. Lastly,  to  please  my  wife,  I  undertook  the  labour 
of  a  set  of  plates  for  her  use.  Fritz  and  Jack  engaged  to 
make  the  hives  for  the  bees  and  nests  for  the  pigeons  and 
hens.  For  this  last  object,  they  took  the  largest  gourds, 
and  cut  a  hole  in  front,  the  size  of  the  animal  for  whose 
use  it  was  intended:  they  had,  when  finished,  so  very  pretty 
an  appearance,  that  little  Francis  was  ready  to  cry  that  he 
was  not  quite  small  enough  to  get  into  and  live  in  one  of  them. 
The  pigeons'  nests  were  intended  to  be  tied  to  the  branches  of 
our  tree;  those  for  the  hens,  the  geese,  and  the  ducks,  were 
to  be  placed  between  its  roots,  or  on  the  sea  shore,  and  to 
represent  a  sort  of  hen-coop. 

Our  work,  added  to  the  heat  of  the  day,  had  made  us  all 
thirsty;  but  we  found  nothing  on  this  spot  like  our  fountain 
plants,  as  we  had  named  them.  The  boys  entreated  me  to 
go  with  them  in  different  directions,  and  try  to  find  some 
water,  not  daring  by  themselves  to  venture  further  into  the 
wood. 

Ernest  with  great  eagerness  proposed  relieving  me  of 
this  trouble,  and  putting  himself  in  my  place.  It  was  not 
long  before  we  heard  him  calling  loudly  to  us,  and  saw  him 
returning  in  great  alarm.  "Run  quick,  father, "  said  he, 
"  here  is  an  immense  wild  boar.  Oh,  how  he  frightened  me ! 
I  heard  him  grunting  quite  close  to  rne,  and  then  he  scam- 
pered away  to  the  wood.     I  hear  him  at  this  very  moment." 

I  then  cried  out  to  the  boys  to  call  the  dogs  quickly. 
"Halloo,  here,  Turk!  Flora!"  The  dogs  arrived  full 
gallop.  Ernest  was  our  leader,  and  conducted  us  to  the 
place  where  he  saw  the  boar;  but  he  was  gone,  and  we  saw 
nothing  but  a  plot  of  potatoes  which  appeared  to  have  been 
ransacked  by  the  animal.     The  ardour  for  the  chase  had 


250  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

been  somewhat  checked  in  Jack  and  Ernest,  when  they  con- 
sidered that  they  had  so  formidable  a  creature  to  encounter: 
they  stopped  short,  and  began  to  dig  potatoes,  and  left  it  to 
Fritz  and  me  to  follow  the  traces  of  the  \3ogs.  We  soon 
heard  the  cry  of  the  latter ;  for  they  had  overtaken  the  runaway, 
and  soon  after  the  most  hideous  growling  assailed  our  ears 
from  the  same  quarter.  We  advanced  with  caution,  holding 
our  guns  in  readiness  to  fire  together  the  instant  the  animal 
should  be  within  the  proper  distance.  Presently  the  spec- 
tacle of  the  two  brave  creatures  attacking  him  on  the  right 
and  left  presented  itself;  each  held  one  of  his  ears  between 
their  teeth.  But  it  was  not  a  boar,  but  our  own  sow  which 
had  runaway  and  so  long  been  lost!  After  the  first  surprise 
we  could  not  resist  a  hearty  laugh;  and  then  we  hastened 
to  disencumber  our  old  friend  of  the  teeth  of  her  two  ad- 
versaries. Her  frightful  squalling  resounded  through  the 
wood,  and  drew  our  young  companions  to  the  place,  when  a 
warfare  of  banter  and  accusation  went  round  among  the 
parties.  But  here  the  attention  of  all  was  attracted  to  a  kind 
of  small  potato  which  we  observed  lying  thick  on  the  grass 
around  us,  and  which  had  fallen  from  some  trees  which  ap- 
peared loaded  with  the  same  production:  our  sow  devoured 
them  greedily,  thus  consoling  herself  for  the  pain  and  fright 
the  dogs  had  occasioned  her. 

The  fruit  was  of  different  colours,  and  extremely  pleasing 
to  the  eye.  Fritz  expressed  his  apprehension  that  it  was  the 
poisonous  apple  called  the  Mancenilla;  but  the  sow  ate  them 
with  so  much  eagerness,  and  the  tree  which  bore  them  hav- 
ing neither  the  form  nor  foliage  ascribed  by  naturalises  to 
the  Mancenilla,  made  me  doubt  of  the  truth  of  his  idea.  I 
desired  my  sons  to  put  some  of  the  fruit  in  their  pockets,  to 
make  an  experiment  with  them  upon  the  monkey.     We  now 


252  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

again,  from  extreme  thirst,  began  to  recollect  our  want  of 
water,  and  determined  to  seek  for  some  in  every  direction. 
Jack  sprang  off,  and  sought  among  the  rocks,  hoping  that 
he  should  discover  some  little  stream:  but  scarcely  had  he 
left  the  wood,  than  he  bawled  to  us  that  he  had  found  a 
crocodile! 

"  A  crocodile!"  cried  I  with  a  hearty  laugh,  "you  have 
a  fine  imagination,  my  boy!  who  ever  saw  a  crocodile  on 
such  scorching  rocks  as  these,  and  with  not  a  drop  of  water 
near?     Now,  Jack,  you  are  surely  dreaming " 

"  Not  so  much  of  a  dream  as  you  may  think,  father,"  an- 
swered Jack,  trying  to  speak  in  a  low  voice;  "  fortunately 
he  is  asleep; — he  lies  here  on  a  stone  at  his  full  length; — do, 
father,  step  here  and  look  at  it;  it  does  not  stir  in  the  least." 

We  stole  softly  to  the  place  where  the  animal  lay;  but 
instead  of  a  crocodile,  I  saw  before  me  a  large  sort  of  lizard, 
named  by  naturalists  Leguana  or  Yguana,  an  animal  by 
nature  of  a  mild  character,  and  excellent  as  food.  Instantly 
all  were  for  seizing  him,  and  presenting  so  rare  a  prize  to 
their  mother.  Fritz  was  already  taking  aim  with  his  gun; 
but  I  prevented  him,  observing,  that  the  animal  being  pro- 
tected by  a  coat  of  scales,  it  might  be  difficult  to  destroy 
him,  and  that  he  is  known  to  be  dangerous,  if  approached 
when  angry.  "Let  us  try,"  said  I,  "another  sort  of  ex- 
periment; as  he  is  asleep,  we  need  not  be  in  a  hurry:  only  a 
little  contrivance  is  necessary  to  have  him  safe  in  our  power 
alive,  and  the  process  will  afford  us  an  amusing-  spectacle." 

I  cut  a  stout  stick  from  a  bush,  to  the  extremity  of  which 
I  tied  a  string  with  a  running  knot.  I  guarded  my  other 
hand  simply  with  a  little  switch,  and  thus  with  cautious  steps 
approached  the  creature.  When  I  was  very  near  to  him,  I 
began  to  whistle  a  lively  air,  taking  care  to  make  the  sounds 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON.  253 

low  at  first,  and  to  increase  in  loudness  till  the  lizard  was 
awaked.  The  creature  appeared  entranced  with  pleasure 
as  the  sounds  fell  upon  his  ear;  he  raised  his  head  to  receive 
them  still  more  distinctly,  and  looked  round  on  all  sides  to 
discover  from  whence  they  came.  I  now  advanced  by  a  step 
at  a  time,  without  a  moment's  interval  in  the  music,  which 
fixed  him  like  a  statue  to  the  place.  At  length  I  was  near 
enough  to  reach  him  with  my  switch,  with  which  I  tickled 
him  gently,  still  continuing  to  whistle*  one  after  the  other, 
the  different  airs  I  could  recollect.  The  lizard  was  bewil- 
dered by  the  charms  of  the  music;  the  attitudes  he  threw, 
himself  into  were  expressive  of  a  delirious  voluptuousness; 
he  stretched  himself  at  full  length,  made  undulating  motions 
with  his  long  tail,  threw  his  head  about,  raised  it  up,  and  by 
this  sort  of  action,  disclosed  the  formidable  range  of  his 
sharp-pointed  teeth,  which  were  capable  of  tearing  us  to 
pieces  if  we  had  excited  his  hostility.  I  dexterously  seized 
the  moment  of  his  raising  his  head,  to  throw  my  noose  over 
him.  When  this  was  accomplished,  the  boys  drew  near  also, 
and  wanted  instantly  to  draw  it  tight  and  strangle  him  at 
once;  but  this  I  positively  forbade,  being  unwilling  to  cause 
the  poor  animal  so  unmerited  a  suffering.  I  had  used  the 
noose  only  to  make  sure  of  him,  in  case  it  should  happen 
that  a  milder  mode  of  killing  him,  which  I  intended  to  try, 
failed  of  success,  in  which  case  I  should  have  looked  to  the 
noose  for  protection;  but  this  was  rendered  unnecessary. 
Continuing  to  whistle  my  most  affecting  melodies,  I  seized  a 
favourable  moment  to  plunge  my  switch  into  one  of  his  nos- 
trils. The  blood  flowed  in  abundance,  and  soon  deprived 
him  of  life,  without  his  exhibiting  the  least  appearance  of 
being  in  pain:  on  the  contrary,  to  the  last  moment,  he  seemed 
to  be  still  listening  to  the  music. 


254  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

As  soon  as  he  was  dead,  I  allowed  the  boys  to  come 
quite  near,  and  to  tighten  the  noose,  which  we  now  found 
useful  to  draw  him  to  the  ground  from  the  large  stone  on 
which  he  lay.  My  sons  were  delighted  with  the  means  I 
had  used  for  killing  him  without  pain.  We  had  now  to 
consider  of  the  best  way  for  transporting  to  Falcon's  Stream 
so  large  and  valuable  a  booty.  After  a  moment  of  reflec- 
tion, I  perceived  that  I  had  better  come  at  once  to  the  de- 
termination of  carrying  him  across  my  shoulders;  and  the 
figure  I  made  with  so  singular  an  animal  on  my  back,  with 
his  tail  dragging  on  the  ground,  was  not  the  least  amusing 
circumstance  of  the  adventure.  Fritz  and  Jack  presented 
themselves  as  pages,  contending  which  should  support  my 
train,  as  they  called  the  tail,  which,  independently  of 
the  good  humour  inspired  amongst  us,  considerably  eased 
me  of  the  weight,  and  gave  me  the  air  of  an  old  Chinese 
emperor,  habited  in  a  superb  royal  mantle  of  many  col- 
ours; for  those  of  the  lizard  shone  like  precious  stones  in 
the  eyes  of  the  sun. 

We  were  proceeding  in  our  return,  when  we  distinguished 
the  voice  of  my  wife  and  little  Francis  calling  loudly  upon 
my  name.  Our  long  absence  had  alarmed  them:  we  had 
forgot  on  this  occasion  to  give  them  notice  of  our  approach 
by  firing  our  gun,  and  they  had  imagined  some  terrible  dis- 
aster must  have  befallen  us.  No  sooner,  however,  did  our 
cheerful  notes  reach  their  ear,  than  their  lamentations  were 
changed  to  joy,  and  we  were  soon  the  happiest  of  beings, 
assembled  under  a  large  gourd  tree,  where  we  related  every 
particular  of  the  excursion  we  had  made,  and  laid  the 
lizard  at  her  feet.  We  had  so  many  things  to  tell,  that, 
till  reminded  by  my  wife,  we  forgot  to  mention  that  we  had 
failed   of  procuring    any   water.     My   sons   had    taken   out 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  255 

some  of  the  unknown  apples  from  their  pockets,  and  they 
lay  on  the  ground  by  our  side.  Knips  soon  scented  them, 
and  came  slily  up  and  stole  several,  and  fell  to  chewing 
them  with  great  eagerness.  I  myself  threw  one  or  two  to 
the  bustard,  who  also  ate  them  without  hesitation.  Being 
now  convinced  that  the  apples  were  not  of  a  poisonous  na- 
ture, I  announced  to  the  boys,  who  had  looked  on  with  envy 
all  the  time,  that  they  also  might  begin  to  eat  them,  and  I 
myself  set  the  example.  We  found  them  excellent  in 
quality,  and  I  began  to  suspect  that  they  might  be  the  sort 
of  fruit  called  guava,  which  is  much  esteemed  in  such 
countries.  The  tree  which  bears  them  is  sometimes  twenty 
feet  in  height,  and  of  so  fertile  a  nature,  that  in  inhabited 
countries  they  are  sometimes  thinned  and  cut  down,  on  ac- 
count of  the  quantity  of  land  they  would  occupy.  This  re- 
gale of  the  apples  had  in  some  measure  relieved  our  thirst; 
but  on  the  other  hand,  they  had  increased  our  hunger;  and 
as  we  had  not  time  for  preparing  a  portion  of  the  lizard, 
we  were  obliged  to  content  ourselves  with  the  cold  pro- 
visions we  had  brought  with  us. 

We  had  scarcely  finished,  before  my  wife  earnestly  en- 
treated we  would  begin  our  journey  home,  and  it  appeared 
to  me,  as  the  evening  was  so  far  advanced,  that  it  would 
be  prudent  to  return  this  once  without  the  sledge,  which 
was  heavy  laden,  and  the  ass  could  have  drawn  it  but  slow- 
ly: I  therefore  determined  to  leave  it  on  the  spot  till  the 
following  day,  when  I  could  return  and  fetch  it,  contenting 
myself  with  loading  the  ass,  for  the  present,  with  the  bags 
which  contained  our  new  sets  of  porcelain;  the  lizard,  which 
I  feared  might  not  keep  fresh  so  long;  and  our  little  Fran- 
cis, who  began  to  complain  of  being  tired.  I  took  these 
arrangements  upon  myself,  and  left  to  my  wife  and  Fritz 


256  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

the  care  of  confining  the  bustard  in  such  a  manner  that  she 
could  walk  before  us  without  danger  of  escaping. 

When  these  preparations  were  complete,  our  little  caravan 
was  put  in  motion,  taking  the  direction  of  a  straight  line  to 
Falcon's  Stream.  The  course  of  our  route  now  lay  along 
a  wood  of  majestic  oaks,  and  the  ground  was  covered  with 
acorns.  My  young  travellers  could  not  refrain  from  tasting 
them,  and  finding  them  both  sweet  and  mild  to  the  palate, 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  reckoning  them  as  a  new  means  of 
support.  On  considering,  I  recognised  that  they  were  a 
kind  of  oak  which  remains  always  green,  and  are  a  common 
production  of  the  woods  in  Florida,  and  that  the  Indians  of 
North  America  extract  from  its  fruit  an  excellent  kind  of 
sweet  oil,  which  they  use  in  cooking  their  rice.  Numerous 
kinds  of  birds  subsist  upon  these  acorns.  This  we  were  led 
to  remark,  by  the  wild  and  discordant  cries  of  several  sorts 
of  jays  and  parrots,  which  were  skipping  merrily  among  the 
foliage  and  the  branches. 

We  arrived  shortly  at  Falcon's  Stream,  and  had  time  to 
employ  ourselves  in  some  trifling  arrangements,  before  it 
was  completely  dark.  My  wife  had  great  pleasure  in  taking 
out  her  service  of  porcelain,  and  using  some  of  the  articles 
that  very  evening;  particularly  the  handsome  egg-basket, 
and  the  vessels  for  the  milk.  Fritz  was  instructed  to  dig  a 
place  in  the  ground,  to  serve  for  a  kind  of  cooler,  the  better 
to  preserve  the  milk;  and  we  covered  it  with  boards,  and 
put  heavy  stones  to  keep  them  down.  Jack  took  the 
pigeons'  nests,  and  scampered  up  the  tree,  where  he  nailed 
them  to  the  branches;  he  next  laid  some  dry  moss  within, 
and  placed  one  of  the  female  pigeons  we  had  contrived  to 
tame,  and  which  at  the  time  was  brooding,  upon  it;  he  put 
the  eggs  carefully  under  the  mother,  who  seemed  to  accept 
his  services,  and  to  coo  in  return,  with  gratitude. 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON.  c251 

We  concluded  the  exertions  of  the.  day  with  a  plain  repast, 
and  the  contriving  a  comfortable  bed  for  the  bustard  by  the 
side  of  the  flamingo,  and  then  stretched  our  weary  limbs 
upon  the  homely  couch,  rendered  by  fatigue  luxurious,  in 
the  giant  tree. 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

Excursion  into  Unknown  Tracts. 

My  first  thought  the  next  morning,  was  to  fetch  the  sledge 
from  the  wood.  I  had  a  double  motive  for  leaving  it  there, 
which  I  had  refrained  from  explaining  to  my  wife,  to  avoid 
giving  her  uneasiness.  I  had  formed  a  wish  to  penetrate 
a  little  farther  into  the  land,  and  ascertain  whether  any  thing 
useful  would  present  itself  beyond  the  wall  of  rocks.  I 
was,  besides,  desirous  to  be  better  acquainted  with  the  ex- 
tent, the  form,  and  general  productions  of  our  island:  I 
wished  Fritz  only,  who  was  stronger  and  more  courageous 
than  his  brothers,  and  Turk,  to  accompany  me.  We  set 
■out  Ye^rj  early  in  the  morning,  and  drove  the  ass  before  us 
for  the  purpose  of  drawing  home  the  sledge. 

As  we  were  picking  up  some  acorns,  different  birds  of 
exquisite  plumage  flitted  about  us;  for  this  once,  I  could 
not  refuse  Fritz  the  pleasure  of  firing  upon  them,  that  we 
might  learn  their  species.  He  brought  down  three.  1 
.recognised  one  to  be  the  great  blue  Virginia  jay,  and  the 
ether  two  were  parrots.  One  of  the  two  was  a  superb  red 
parrot;  the  other  was  green  and  yellow. 

X 


258  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

While  Fritz  was  reloading  his  gun,  we  heard  a  singular 
sort  of  noise,  which  came  from  a  distance.  At  one  moment 
it  resembled  a  muffled  drum,  at  another,  the  noise  made  in 
sharpening  a  saw.  My  first  idea  was  of  music  played  by 
savages,  and  we  retreated  quickly  to  hide  ourselves  among^ 
the  bushes  to  listen.  By  degrees  we  advanced  towards  the 
place  from  whence  the  sound  appeared  to  come:  but  per- 
ceiving nothing  to  alarm  us,  we  separated  some  of  the 
branches  with  our  hands,  and  then  discovered  a  handsome 
bird,  about  the  size  of  the  English  cock;  and,  like  it  toor 
adorned  with  elegantly  formed  smooth  feathers  round  the 
neck,  and  a  comb  upon  his  head.  The  animal  stood  erect 
on  a  decayed  trunk  of  a  tree,  which  was  lying  on  the  ground,, 
and  at  this  moment  exhibited  some  singular  gestures.  His 
tail  was  spread  in  the  form  of  a  fan,  similar  to  that  of  the 
turkey-cock,  but  shorter;  the  feathers  round  his  neck  and 
head  were  erect  and  bristling.  He  sometimes  agitated 
them  with  so  quick  a  motion,  as  to  make  them  appear  like 
a  vapour  which  suddenly  inclosed  him:  sometimes  he  whirl- 
ed himself  round  and  round  on  the  trunk  of  the  tree;  at  others 
he  moved  his  head  and  eyes  in  such  a  manner  as  to  express 
a  state  of  distraction,  making,  at  the  same  time,  the  singular 
kind  of  noise  with  his  voice  which  had  alarmed  us,  and 
which  was  preceded  and  followed  by  a  sort  of  explosion.. 
This  last  was  caused  by  the  motion  of  his  wing  striking  in 
a  quick  measure  on  the  trunk,  which  was  hollow  and  dry, 
and  made  the  noise  resemble  a  muffled  drum.  There  were 
assembled  around  him  a  great  number  of  birds  of  the  same 
species,  but  much  smaller,  and  of  a  less  beautiful  form. 
One  and  all  fixed  their  eyes  upon  him,  and  seemed  delighted 
with  the  pantomime.  I  contemplated  this  extraordinary  spec- 
tacle, of  which  I  had  formerly  read  an  account,  with  astonish- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON  259 

ment.  The  number  of  the  spectators  of  the  feathered  actor 
increased  every  moment,  and  the  performance  increased  in 
spirit  also  in  proportion,  presenting  the  idea  of  a  perfect 
intoxication  or  delirium  of  the  creature.  At  this  moment 
Fritz,  who  stood  a  little  behind  me,  put  an  end  to  the  scene 
by  firing  off  his  gun.  The  actor  fell  from  the  stage,  and 
stretching  himself  on  the  sand,  breathed  his  last,  and  the 
spectators  betook  themselves  suddenly  to  flight.  I  must 
confess,  the  interest  I  took  in  the  exhibition  was  of  so  lively 
a  nature,  that  I  could  not  refrain  from  reproaching  Fritz 
in  an  angry  tone.  "  Why,"  said  I,  "  must  we  be  always  ap- 
plying the  means  of  death  and  annihilation  to  the  creatures 
that  fall  in  our  way  ?  Is  not  nature  a  thousand  times  more 
exhilarating  in  her  animated  movements,  which  express 
life  and  enjoyment,  than  in  the  selfish  scheme  of  destruction 
you  seem  so  fond  of?  Some  allowance  should  no  doubt  be 
made  for  the  curiosity  of  youth,  for  necessities  caused  by 
our  situation,  and  even  for  the  taste  you  have  acquired  for 
sporting.  I,  therefore,  as  you  well  know,  do  not  object  to 
your  killing  now  and  then  a  little  game,  or  some  singular 
or  dangerous  kind  of  animal;  but  moderation  is  on  all  occa- 
sions useful,  and  the  spectacle  of  this  bird,  employed  in 
such  earnest  endeavours  to  draw  his  females  around  him, 
was  at  least  as  amusing,  as  to  see  him  stretched  there  at 
length,  and  lifeless,  who  but  two  minutes  ago  exhibited 
such  rapid  and  lively  motions!  His  pretty  hens  too,  all 
dispersed  in  terror,  and  deprived  of  the  possibility  of  ever 
more  admiring  him,  or  being  his  companions!" 

Fritz  looked  down,  ashamed  and  sorry.  I  observed  to 
him,  the  thing  being  done,  there  was  now  no  remedy;  tjiat 
the  fetras,  or  heath-cock,  was  much  esteemed  as  game;  and 
that  he  had  better  take  it  from  the  ground,  and  carry  it  to 
his  mother 


260  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON, 

We  now  laid  the  dead  cock  upon  the  ass's  back,  and  pro- 
ceeded on  our  journey.  We  soon  arrived  at  the  guava 
trees,  and  a  little  after  at  the  spot  where  we  had  left  the 
sledge,  when  we  found  our  treasures  in  the  best  possible 
condition:  but  as  the  morning  was  not  far  advanced,  we 
entered  upon  our  intended  project  of  penetrating  beyond  the 
wall  of  rocks. 

We  pursued  our  way  in  a  straight  line  at  the  foot  of  these 
massy,  solid  productions  of  nature,  every  moment  expect- 
ing to  reach  their  extremity,  or  to  rind  some  turn,  or  breach, 
or  passage  through  them,  that  should  conduct  us  into  the 
interior  of  the  island,  if,  as  I  presumed,  it  was  not  termina- 
ted by  these  rocks.  We  walked  on,  continually  looking 
about,  that  nothing  might  escape  us  worthy  of  notice,  and 
to  anticipate  and  avoid  such  dangers  as  should  threaten. 
Turk,  with  his  usual  bravery,  took  the  lead,  the  ass  followed 
with  lazy  steps,  shaking  his  long  ears,  and  Fritz  and  I 
brought  up  the  rear. 

We  next  entered  a  pretty  little  grove,  the  trees  of  which 
were  unknown  to  us.  Their  branches  were  loaded  with 
large  quantities  of  berries  of  an  extraordinary  quality,  being^ 
entirely  covered  with  a  wax  which  stuck  to  our  fingers  as 
we  attempted  to  gather  them.  I  knew  of  a  sort  of  bush  pro- 
ducing wax  that  grows  in  America,  and  named  by  botanists 
Myrrca  cerifera;  I  had  no  doubt  that  this  was  the  plant,, 
and  the  discovery  gave  me  great  pleasure.  "Let  us  stop- 
here,"  said  I  to  Fritz,  "for  we  cannot  do  better  than  collect 
a  great  quantity  of  these  berries  as  a  useful  present  to  your 
mother." 

A  short  time  after,  another  object  presented  itself  with 
equal  claims  to  our  attention;  it  was  the  singular  modes  of 
behaviour  of  a  kind  of  bird  scarcely  larger  than  a  chaffinch* 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  £61 

and  clothed  in  feathers  of  a. common  brown  colour.  These 
birds  appeared  to  exist  as  a  republic,  there  being  among  them 
one  common  nest,  inhabited  at  pleasure  by  all  their  tribes. 
We  saw  one  of  these  nests  in  a  tree,  in  a  somewhat  retired 
situation;  it  was  formed  of  plaited  straws  and  bulrushes  in- 
termixed; it  inclosed  great  numbers  of  inhabitants,  and  was 
built  round  the  trunk  of  the  tree:  it  had  a  kind  of  roof  formed 
of  roots  and  bulrushes,  carefully  knit  together.  We  ob- 
served in  the  sides  small  apertures,  seemingly  intended  as 
doors  and  windows  to  each  particular  cell  of  this  general 
receptacle;  from  a  few  of  these  apertures  issued  some  small 
branches,  which  served  the  birds  as  points  of  rest  for  enter- 
ing and  returning:  the  external  appearance  of  the  whole, 
excited  the  image  of  an  immensely  large  open  sponge.  The 
inhabitants  were  very  numerous;  they  passed  in  and  out  con- 
tinually, and  I  estimated  that  it  might  contain  at  least  a  mil- 
lion. The  males  were  somewhat  larger  than  the  females, 
and  there  was  a  trifling  difference  in  their  plumage:  the  num- 
ber of  the  males  was  very  small  in  proportion  to  the  females: 
I  do  not  know  whether  this  had  been  the  cause  of  their  thus 
assembling  together.  I 

While  we  were  attentively  examining  this  interesting 
little  colony,  we  perceived  a  very  small  kind  of  parrot  hover- 
ing about  the  nest.  Their  gilded  green  wings,  and  the 
variety  of  their  colours,  produced  a  beautiful  effect;  they 
seemed  to  be  perpetually  disputing  with  the  colonists,  and  not 
unfrequently  endeavoured  to  prevent  their  entrance  into 
the  building;  they  attacked  them  fiercely,  and  even  tried 
to  peck  at  us,  if  we  but  advanced  our  hand  to  the  structure. 
Fritz,  who  was  well  trained  in  the  art  of  climbing  trees, 
was  earnestly  desirous  to  take  a  nearer  view  of  them,  and 
to   secure,  if  possible,  a  few   individuals.     He  threw   his 


262  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

burden  down,  and  climbed  to  the  nest;  he  then  tried  to 
introduce  his  hand  into  one  of  the  apertures,  and  to  seize 
whatever  living  creature  it  should  touch,  in  that  particular 
cell;  what  he  most  desired,  was  to  find  a  female  brooding, 
and  to  carry  both  her  and  the  eggs  away.  Several  of  the 
cells  were  empty,  but  by  perseverance  he  found  one  in  the 
situation  he  wished;  but  he  received  so  violent  a  peck  from 
an  invisible  bird,  that  his  only  care  was  now  to  withdraw 
his  hand;  presently,  however,  he  ventured  a  second  time  to 
pass  his  hand  *into  the  nest,  and  succeeded  in  seizing  his 
prey,  which  he  laid  hold  of,  and,  in  spite  of  the  bird's  re- 
sistance, he  drew  it  through  the  aperture,  and  squeezed  it 
into  the  pocket  of  his  waistcoat;  and  buttoning  it  securely, 
he  slided  down  the  tree,  and  reached  the  ground  in  safety. 
The  signals  of  distress  sent  forth  by  the  prisoner  collected 
a  multitude  of  birds  from  their  cells,  who  all  surrounded 
him,  uttering  loud  cries,  and  attacking  him  with  their  beaks, 
till  he  had  made  good  his  retreat.  He  now  released  the 
prisoner,  and  we  discovered  him  to  be  a  beautiful  little  green 
parrot,  which  Fritz  entreated  he  might  be  allowed  to  pre- 
serve, and  make  a  present  of  to  his  brothers,  who  would  make 
a  cage  to  keep  him  in,  and  would  then  tame  him  and  teach 
him  to  speak. 

On  the  road  home,  we  observed  to  each  other,  that  from 
the  circumstance  of  this  young  nestling  within  the  struc- 
ture, it  appeared  probable  that  the  true  right  of  property 
was  in  this  species,  and  that  the  brown-coloured  birds  we 
at  first  observed,  were  intruders,  endeavouring  to  deprive 
them  of  it.  "  Thus  we  find,"  said  I  to  Fritz,  "  the  existence 
of  social  dispositions  in  almost  every  class  of  the  animal 
kingdom,  which  leads  to  the  combining  together  for  a  com- 
mon cause  or  benefit.     A  multitude  of  causes  may  induce 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON".  263 

animals  to  form  a  body  or  society,  instead  of  living  singly: 
among  them  may  be  supposed  the  deficiency  of  females  or 
of  males;  the  charge  of  the  young;  providing  them  with 
foocl;  or  as  a  means  for  their  safety  and  protection.  Who 
shall  dare  to  fix  limits  to  the  instinct  or  to  the  faculties  of 
the  animal  creation?" 

Fritz. — I  do  not,  however,  recollect  any  kind  of  animals 
who  live  thus  together  in  society,  except  the  bees.    - 

Father. — What  say  you  then  to  wasps,  drones,  and  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  ants? 

Fritz. — I  did  not  indeed  recollect  the  ants,  though  I  have 
so  often  amused  myself  with  looking  at  them:  nothing  can  be 
more  interesting  than  the  ingenious  little  houses  they  con- 
struct; observing  them  attentively,  we  perceive  their  indus- 
try, their  economy,  their  care  of  their  young,  in  a  word,  all 
their  undertakings,  conducted  on  a  plan  of  society  and  num- 
bers. 

Father. — Have  you  also  observed  with  what  a  provident 
kind  of  instinct  they  bring  out  their  eggs  to  be  warmed  by 
the  sun,  and  for  this  end  remove  them  from  place  to  place 
till  the  time  of  their  maturity? 

Fritz. — Is  it  not  probable,  father,  that  what  we  take  for 
eggs,  are  chrysales  of  ants,  which,  like  many  other  insects, 
are  thus  shut  up  while  the  process  of  their  taking  wings,  is  in 
the  operation  ? 

Father. — You  may  be  right.  Writers  on  natural  history 
have  considered  the  industry  and  frugality  of  these  insects, 
as  a  subject  not  unworthy  of  their  consideration;  but  if  the 
common  ant  of  our  own  country  excited  so  much  of  your  ad- 
miration, what  will  be  your  astonishment  at  the  labours  per- 
formed by  the  ants  of  other  regions!  There  is  a  kind  which 
build  nests  of  four,  six,  and  eight  feet  in  height,  and  large 


264  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON". 

in  proportion:  the  external  walls  of  these  structures  are  so 
thick  and  solid,  that  neither  sun  nor  rain  can  penetrate  them. 
They  are  houses  which  contain  within,  little  streets,  arched 
roofs,  piazzas,  colonnades,  and  particular  apartments  for  the 
offices  of  housewifery.  The  ant  is  an  animal  of  pilfering 
propensities,  on  the  profits  of  which  it  principally  lives;  it  is 
also  remarkable  for  constancy  in  its.  designs,  and  remaining 
ever  in- one  place:  a  species  of  them  exists,  however,  in 
America,  which  is  known  by  the  name  of  the  cephalate,  or 
visiting  ant;  they  make  their  appearance  in  numerous  troops 
every  two  or  three  years,  and  disperse  themselves  in  every 
house;  as  soon  as  their  visit  is  observed,  it  is  customary  to 
open  all  the  apartments  and  receptacles  for  stores;  they  en- 
ter every  where,  and  in  a  short  time  it  is  found  that  they 
have  exterminated  as  effectually  the  rats,  mice,  bugs,  ka- 
kerles  (a  sort  of  insect  that  gives  great  annoyance  in  hot 
countries); — in  a  word,  all  the  different  animals  offensive  or 
injurious  to  man,  as  if  sent  on  a  special  mission  to  remedy 
the  evils  these  occasion.  They  do  no  injury  to  man,  unless 
they  find  in  him  an  enemy,  who  pursues  and  disturbs  their 
quiet;  in  which  case  they  attack  his  shoes  so  violently,  that 
they  are  destroyed  with  incredible  rapidity.  This  curious 
species  does  not  build  its  house  above  ground,  but  digs 
holes,  sometimes  not  less  than  eight  feet  in  depth,  and  plas- 
ter the  walls  according  to  the  rules  of  the  art  of  masonry. 

Fritz. — You  mentioned  just  now,  that  in  each  class  of  the 
animal  creation  there  were  some  individuals  which  formed 
themselves  into  societies;  pray  tell  me  which  they  are? 

Father. — I  l^novv  of  no  instance  among  birds,  but  that  we 
have  just  been  witnessing:  but  among  quadrupeds  there  is 
at  least  one  striking  example  of  the  social  principle: — try  to 
recollect  it  yourself. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  265 

Frtlz. — It  is  perhaps  the  elephant  or  the  sea-otter. 

Father. — Neither  is  the  one  I  thought  of:  the  animals  you 
have  named  discover  also  a  strong  disposition  to  Hve  in  so- 
ciety with  their  species,  but  they  build  nothing  like  a  com- 
mon house  of  reception: — try  again. 

Fritz. — Ah,  is  it  not  the  beaver,  father?  Is  it  hot  true, 
that  these  animals  possess  an  intelligence,  that  enables  them 
to  contrive  and  place  dams  to  such  streams  or  rivers  as" 
obstruct  their  design  of  building  entire  villages,  and  that 
by  this  operation  they  are  furnished  with  a  sort  of  ditch, 
which  they  use  for  their  purposes? 

Father. — You  are  quite  right;  and,  strictly  speaking,  the 
marmoset  also  may  be  included  in  the  number  of  sociable 
quadrupeds ;  for  they  dig  themselves  a  common  place  of  abode, 
a  sort  of  cavern,  in  the  mountains,  and  in  these  whole  families 
of  them  pass  the  winter  comfortably,  in  a  continual  sleep. 

We  reached  a  wood,  the  trees  of  which  in  a  small  degree 
resembled  the  wild  fig-tree;  at  least  the  fruit  they  bore,  like 
the  fig,  was  round  in  form,  and  contained  a  soft  juicy  sub- 
stance full  of  small  grains.  Their  height  was  from  forty  to 
sixty  feet:  the  bark  of  the  trunk  was  scaly,  like  the  pine- 
apple, and  wholly  bare  of  branches,  except  at  the  very  top. 

The  leaves  of  these  trees  are  very  thick;  in  substance, 
tough,  like  leather;  and  their  upper  and  under  surfaces  are 
different  in  colour.  But  what  surprised  us  the  most,  was  a 
kind  of  gum,  which  issued  in  a  liquid  state  from  the  trunk 
of  the  tree,  and  became  immediately  hardened  by  the  air. 
This  discovery  awakened  Fritz's  attention:  in  Europe  he 
had  often  made  use  of  the  gum  produced  by  cherry-trees, 
either  as  a  cement  or  varnish  in  his  youthful  occupations; 
and  the  thought  struck  him,  that  he  could  do  the  same  with 
what  he  now  saw. 

Y 


266  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

As  we  walked,  he  looked  frequently  at  his  gum,  which  he 
tried  to  soften  with  his  breath,  but  without  success:  he 
now  discovered  a  still  more  singular  property  in  the  sub- 
stance; that  of  stretching  on  being  pulled  at  the  extremities; 
and,  on  letting  go,  of  reducing  itself  instantly,  by  the  power 
of  an  elastic  principle.  He  was  struck  with  surprise,  and 
sprang  towards  me,  repeating  the  experiment  before  my  eyes, 
and  exclaiming,  "  Look,  father!  if  this  is  not  the  very  thing 
we  formerly  used,  to  rub  out  bad  strokes  in  our  drawings." 

"Ah!  what  do  you  tell  me?"  cried  I  with  joy:  "such  a  dis- 
covery would  be  valuable  indeed.  The  best  thanks  of  all 
will  be  due  to  you,  if  it  is  the  true  caoutchouc  tree  which 
yields  the  Indian  r,ubber.  Quick,  hand  it  here,  that  I  may 
examine  it." — Having  satisfied  myself  of  our  good  fortune, 
I  had  now  to  explain,  that  caoutchouc  is  a  kind  of  milky  sap, 
which  runs  from  its  tree,  in  consequence  of  incisions  made 
in  the  bark.  "  This  liquor  is  received  in  vessels  placed  ex- 
pressly for  the  purpose:  it  is  afterwards  made  to  take  the 
form  of  dark-coloured  bottles  of  different  sizes,  such  as  we 
have  seen  them,  in  the  following  manner.  Before  the 
liquor  has  time  to  coagulate,  some  small  earthen  bottles  are 
dipped  into  it  a  sufficient  number  of  times  to  form  the  thick- 
ness required.  These  vessels  are  then  hung  over  smoke, 
which  completely  dries  them,  and  gives  them  a  dark  colour. 
Before  they  are  entirely  dry,  a  knife  is  drawn  across  them, 
which  produces  the  lines  or  figures  with  which  you  have 
seen  them  marked.  The  concluding  part  of  the  operation 
is  to  break  the  mould,  and  to  get  out  the  pieces  by  the  pas- 
sage of  the  neck,  when  there  remains  the  complete  form  of 
a  bottle." 

Frilz. — This  process  seems  simple  enough,  and  we  will 
make  some  bottles  of  it  for  carrying  liquids,  when  we  go  far 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  267 

in  pursuit  of  game.  But  still  I  do  not  perceive  how  the 
discovery  is  of  so  much  value  to  us? 

Father. — Not  by  this  use  of  it  alone,  certainly;  but  its 
quality  is  excellent  for  being  made  into  shoes  and  boots  with- 
out seams,  if  we  can  add  the  assistance  of  earthen  moulds 
of  the  size  of  the  leg  or  foot  to  be  fitted.  We  must  consider 
of  some  means  of  restoring  masses  of  the  caoutchouc  to  its 
liquid  form,  for  spreading  upon  the  moulds;  and  if  we  should 
not  succeed,  we  must  endeavour  to  draw  it  in  sufficient 
quantities,  in  its  liquid  state,  from  the  trees  themselves. 

We  continued  our  way  till  we  reached  another  wood,  the 
skirts  of  which  we  had  already  seen,  it  being  the  same  which 
stretches  from  the  sea  shore  to  the  top  of  the  rocks.  In 
this  spot  alone,  and  mixed  with  a  quantity  of  cocoa-trees,  I 
discovered  a  sort  of  tree  of  smaller  growth,  which  I  presumed 
must  be  the  sago  palm:  one  of  these  had  been  thrown  down 
by  the  wind,  so  that  I  was  able  to  examine  it  thoroughly.  I 
perceived  that  the  trunk  of  it  contained  a  large  quantity  of  a 
mealy  substance;  I  therefore,  with  my  hatchet  laid  it  open 
longways  and  cleared  it  of  the  whole  contents;  and  I  found 
on  tasting,  it  was  exactly  like  the  sago  I  had  often  eaten  in 
Europe.  We  now  began  to  consider  how  much  further  we 
would  go:  the  thick  bushes  of  bamboo,  through  which  it  was 
impossible  to  pass,  seemed  to  furnish  a  natural  conclusion  to 
our  journey.  We  were'  therefore  unable  to  ascertain  whether 
or  not  we  should  have  found  a  passage  beyond  the  wall  of 
rocks:  we  perceived  then  no  better  resource  than  to  turn  to 
the  left  towards  Cape  Disappointment,  where  the  luxurious 
plantations  of  sugar-canes  now  again  drew  our  attention. 
That  we  might  not  return  empty-handed  to  Falcon's  Stream, 
and  might  deserve  forgiveness  for  so  long  an  absence,  we 
each  took  the  pains  to  cut  a  large  bundle  of  the  canes,  which 


268  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON* 

we  threw  across  the  ass's  back,  not  forgetting  the  ceremony 
of  reserving  one  apiece  to  refresh  ourselves  with  along  the 
road.  We  soon  arrived  on  the  well-known  shore  of  the  sea, 
which  at  length  afforded  an  open  and  a  shorter  path;  we  next 
reached  the  wood  of  gourds,  where  we  found  our  sledge 
loaded  as  we  had  left  it  the  night  before;  we  took  the  sugar- 
canes  from  the  ass,  and  fastened  them  to  the  sledge,  and 
then  we  harnessed  the  ass,  and  the  patient  animal  began  to 
draw  towards  home. 

We  arrived  at  Falcon's  Stream  without  any  further  ad- 
venture. We  received  at  first  some  kind  reproofs;  we  were 
next  questioned,  and  lastly  thanked,  as  we  displayed  our 
various  treasures,  but  particularly  the  sugar-canes:  each  of 
the  boys  seized  one  and  began  to  suck  it,  as  did  their  mother 
also.  Nothing  could  be  more  amusing  than  to  hear  Fritz 
relate,  with  unaffected  interest,  our  new  discoveries,  and  to 
see  him  imitate  the  gestures  of  the  heath-cock,  as  he  held  it 
up  for  examination: — his  hearers  continued  to  shout  with 
laughter  for  many  minutes.  Then  came  the  history  of  the 
colony  of  birds  and  their  singular  habitation,  and  of  the 
green  parrot,  all  of  which  was  listened  to  with  the  delight 
excited  by  a  fairy  tale.  Fritz  showed  them  the  handsome 
red  parrot  dead,  also  the  great  blue  jay,  both  of  which  they 
did  not  cease  to  admire;  but  when  he  took  out  of  his  pocket 
the  little  green  parrot  all  alive,  there  were  no  bounds  to  their 
ecstasy:  they  jumped  about  like  mad  things,  and  I  was  oblig- 
ed to  interpose  my  authority  to  prevent  their  tearing  him  to 
pieces,  in  the  struggle  who  should  have  him  first.  Francis 
nearly  devoured  the  little  animal  with  kisses,  repeating  a 
thousand  times  pretty  little  parrot!  At  length  the  bird  was 
fastened  by  the  leg  to  one  of  the  roots  of  the  trees,  till  a  cage 
could  be  made  for  him ;   and  was  fed  with  acorns,  which  he 


270  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

appeared  exceedingly  to  relish.  We  next  gave  an  account 
of  the  prospect  I  now  had  of  furnishing  not  only  candles  but 
boots  and  shoes.  Fritz  took  a  bit  of  the  rubber  from  his 
pocket  and  drew  it  to  its  full  length,  and  then  let  it  go  sud- 
denly, to  the  great  amusement  of  little  Francis. 

Soon  after  night-fall,  we  partook  of  a  hearty  meal:  being 
much  fatigued,  we  went  earlier  than  usual  to  rest,  and  hav- 
ing carefully  drawn  up  the  ladder,  we  fell  exhausted,  into 
sound  and  peaceful  slumbers. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Useful  Occupations  and  Labours. — Embellishments ;  a  pain- 
ful but  natural  Sentiment. 

On  the  following  day,  my  wife  and  the  boys  importuned 
me  to  begin  my  manufactory  of  candles:  I  therefore  set 
myself  to  recollect  all  I  had  read  on  the  subject.  I  soon 
perceived  that  I  should  be  at  a  loss  for  a  little  fat  to  mix 
with  the  wax  I  had  procured  from  the  berries,  for  making 
the  light  burn  clearer;  but  I  was  compelled  to  proceed 
without.  I  put  as  many  berries  into  a  vessel  as  it  wrould 
contain,  and  set  it  on  a  moderate  fire;  my  wife  in  the  mean- 
time employed  herself  in  making  some  wicks  with  the 
threads  of  sail-cloth.  When  we  saw  an  oily  matter  of  a 
pleasing  smell  and  light  green  colour,  rise  to  the  top  of 
the  liquid  the  berries  had  yielded,  we  carefully  skimmed  it 
off  and  put  it  into  a  separate  vessel,  taking  care  to  keep  it 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  271 

warm.  We  continued  this  process  till  the  berries  were  ex- 
hausted, and  had  produced  a  considerable  quantity  of  wax; 
we  next  dipped  the  wicks  one  by  one  into  it,  while  it  re- 
mained liquid,  and  then  hung  them  on  the  bushes  to  har- 
den: in  a  short  time  we  dipped  them  again,  and  repeated 
the  operation,  till  the  candles  were  increased  to  the  proper 
size,  and  they  were  then  put  in  a  place  and  kept,  till  suffi- 
ciently hardened  for  use.  We,  however,  were  all  eager 
to  judge  of  our  success  that  very  evening,  by  burning  one 
of  the  candles,  with  which  we  were  well  satisfied.  In  con- 
sequence of  this  new  treasure,  we  should  now  be  able  to 
sit  up  later,  and  consequently  spend  less  of  our  time  in 
sleep;  but  independently  of  this  advantage,  the  mere  sight 
of  a  candle,  which  for  so  long  a  time  we  had  been  deprived 
of,  caused  ecstasies  of  joy  to  all. 

Our  success  in  this  last  enterprise,  encouraged  us  to 
think  of  another,  the  idea  of  which  had  long  been  cherished 
by  our  kind  steward  of  provisions:  it  was  to  make  fresh 
butter  of  the  cream  we  every  day  skimmed  from  the  milk, 
and  which  was  frequently,  to  her  great  vexation,  spoiled, 
and  given  to  the  animals.  The  utensil  we  stood  in  need  of, 
was  a  churn,  to  turn  the  cream  in.  Having  earnestly  ap- 
plied my  thoughts,  as  to  the  best  manner  of  conquering  the 
difficulty,  I  suddenly  recollected  what  I  had  heard  read  in 
a  book  of  travels,  of  the  method  used  by  the  Hottentots  for 
making  butter;  but  instead  of  a  sheep-skin  sewed  together 
at  its  extremities,  I  emptied  a  large  gourd,  washed  it  clean, 
filled  it  again  with  cream,  and  stopped  it  close  with  the 
piece  I  had  cut  from  the  top.  I  placed  my  vase  of  cream 
on  a  piece  of  sail-cloth  with  four  corners,  and  tied  to  each 
corner  a  stake:  I  placed  One  boy  midway  between  each 
stake,  and  directed  them  to  shake  the  cloth  briskly,  but 


272  THE    SWISS   FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

with  a  steady  measure,  for  a  certain  time.  This  exercise, 
which  seemed  like  children's  play,  pleased  them  mightily, 
and  they  called  it  rocking  the  cradle.  They  performed 
their  office  singing  and  laughing  all  the  time,  and  in  an 
hour,  on  taking  off  the  cover,  we  had  the  satisfaction  of 
seeing  some  excellent  butter.  We  heartily  congratulated 
each  other,  and  praised  the  workmen,  who  by  their  con- 
stancy of  labour,  had  thus  produced  a  most  agreeable 
article  for  food.  I  had  now  to  propose  to  my  sons  a  work 
of  a  more  difficult  nature  than  we  had  hitherto  accom- 
plished: it  was  the  constructing  a  cart,  in  all  its  forms,  for 
the  better  conveyance  of  our  effects  from  place  to  place, 
instead  of  the  sledge,  which  caused  us  so  much  fatigue  to 
load  and  draw.  Many  reasons  induced  me  to  confine  my 
attempt  in  the  first  instance  to  a  two-wheel  cart,  and  to 
observe  the  result  before  I  ventured  on  one  with  four- 
wheels.  I  tried  earnestly  and  long  to  accomplish  such  a 
machine;  but  it  did  not  entirely  succeed  to  my  wishes, 
and  I  wasted  in  the  attempt  both  time  and  timber;  I  however 
produced  what  from  courtesy  we  called  a  cart,  and  it  an- 
swered the  purpose  for  which  it  was  designed. 

When  I  had  no  occasion  for  the  boys,  they  with  their 
mother  engaged  in  other  useful  matters.  They  undertook 
to  transplant  the  European  fruit-trees,  to  place  them  where 
they  would  be  in  a  better  situation  for  growth,  according  to 
the  properties  of  each.  They  planted  vine  shoots  round  the 
roots  of  the  magnificent  tree  we  inhabited,  and  round  the 
trunks  of  some  other  kinds  of  trees  which  grew  near;  and 
we  watched  them,  in  the  fond  anticipation  that  they  would 
in  time  ascend  to  a  height  capable  of  being  formed  into  a 
sort  of  trellis,  and  help  to  cool  us  by  their  shade.  Lastly, 
we  planted  two  parallel  lines  of  saplings,  consisting  of  chest- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSOJV.  273 

nut,  cherry,  and  the  common  nut-trees,  to  form  an  avenue 
from  Family  Bridge  to  Falcon's  Stream,  which  would  here- 
after afford  us  a  shaded  walk  to  Tent-House.  This  last  un- 
dertaking was  not  to  be  effected  without  a  degree  of  labour 
and  fatigue  the  most  discouraging: — the  ground  was  to  be 
cleared  of  every  thing  it  had  produced,  and  a  certain  breadth 
covered  with  sand,  left  higher  in  the  middle  than  on  the 
sides  for  the  sake  of  being  always  dry.  The  boys  fetched 
the  sand  from  the  sea-side  in  their  wheelbarrows. 

Our  next  concern  was  to  introduce,  if  possible,  some  shade 
and  other  improvements  on  the  barren  site  of  Tent-House, 
and  to  render  our  occasional  abode  or  visits  there  more  secure. 
We  began  by  planting  in  a  quincunx  all  those  sorts  of  trees 
that  thrive  best  in  the  sun,  such  as  lemon,  pistachio,  almond, 
mulberry,  and  lime-trees;  lastly,  some  of  a  kind  of  orange- 
tree,  which  attains  to  a  prodigious  size,  and  bears  a  fruit  as 
large  as  the  head  of  a  child.  The  commoner  sorts  of  nut- 
trees  we  placed  along  the  shore.  The  better  to  conceal 
and  fortify  our  tent,  which  inclosed  all  our  stores,  we  form- 
ed on  the  accessible  side,  a  hedge  of  wild  orange  and  lem- 
on-trees, which  produce  an  abundant  prickly  foliage;  and  to 
add  to  the  agreeableness  of  their  appearance,  we  here  a:  d 
there  interspersed  the  pomegranate ;  nor  did  I  omit  to  make 
a  little  arbour  of  the  guava  shrub,  which  is  easily  raised  tktfH 
slips,  and  bears  a  small  fruit  rather  pleasant  to  the  taste. 
We  also  took  care  to  introduce  at  proper  places  a  certain 
number  of  the  largest  sorts  of  trees,  which  in  time  would 
serve  the  double  purpose  of  shading  annual  plants,  and, 
with  benches  placed  under  them,  of  a  kind  of  private  cabi- 
net. Should  any  accident  or  alarm  compel  us  to  retire  to 
the  fortress  of  Tent-House,  a  thing  of  the  first  importance 
would  be  to  find  there  sufficient  food  for  our  cattle.     For  the 


274  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

greater  security,  I  formed  a  plantation  of  the  thorny  fig-tree, 
of  sufficient  breadth  to  occupy  the  space  between  our  fort- 
ress and  the  river,  thus  rendering  it  difficult  for  an  enem) 
to  approach. 

The  curving  form  of  the  river  having  left  some  partial 
elevations  of  the  soil  within  the  inclosure,  I  found  means  to 
work  them  into  slopes  and  angles,  so  as  to  serve  as  bastions 
to  our  two  cannon  from  the  pinnace  and  our  other  fire  arms, 
should  we  ever  be  attacked  by  savages.  When  this  was  all 
complete,  we  perceived  that  one  thing  more  was  wanting, 
which  was  to  make  such  alterations  in  Family  Bridge  as 
would  enable  us  to  use  it  as  a  drawbridge,  or  to  take  it  away 
entirely,  this  being  the  only  point  at  which  the  passage  of 
the  river  could  be  easily  effected.  But  as  we  could  not  do 
all  at  once,  we  contented  ourselves,  for  present  safety,  with 
taking  away  the  first  planks  of  the  bridge  at  each  end  every 
time  we  passed  it.  My  concluding  labour  was  to  plant 
some  cedars  along  the  usual  landing  places,  to  which  we 
might  fasten  our  vessels. 

We  employed  six  whole  weeks  in  effecting  these  laborious 
arrangements;  but  the  exercise  of  mind  and  body  they  im- 
posed, contributed  to  the  physical  and  moral  health  of  the 
boys,  and  to  the  support  of  cheerfulness  and  serenity  in  our- 
selves. The  more  we  embellished  our  abode  by  the  work 
of  our  own  hands,  the  more  it  became  dear  to  our  hearts. 
The  constant  and  strict  observance  of  the  Sabbath-day  afford- 
ed such  an  interval  of  rest  as  could  not  fail  to  restore  our 
strength,  and  inspire  us  with  the  desire  of  new  exertions. 
The  sentiment  of  gratitude  which  filled  our  minds  towards 
the  Supreme  Being,  who  had  saved  us  from  destruction,  and 
supplied  us  with  all  things  needful,  demanded  utterance,  and 
on  Sundays  we  might  allow  ourselves  the  indulgence  of 
pouring  out  our  hearts  in  thankfulness. 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  275 

By  this  time  we  had  nearly  exhausted  our  stock  of  clothes, 
and  we  were  compelled  once  more  to  have  recourse  to  the 
vessel,  which  we  knew  still  contained  some  chests  fit  for 
our  use.  To  this  motive  we  added  an  earnest  desire  to  take 
another  look  at  her,  and,  if  practicable,  to  bring  away  a 
few  pieces  of  cannon,  which  might  be  fixed  on  the  new  bas- 
tions at  Tent-House,  and  thus  we  should  be  prepared  for 
the  worst. 

The  first  fine  day  I  assembled  my  three  eldest  sons,  and 
put  my  design  into  execution.  We  reached  the  wreck  with- 
out any  striking  adventure,  and  found  her  still  fixed  between 
the  rocks,  but  somewhat  more  shattered  than  when  we  had 
last  seen  her.  We  secured  the  chests  of  clothes,  and  what- 
ever remained  of  ammunition  stores;  powder,  shot,  and  even 
such  pieces  of  cannon  as  we  could  remove,  while  those  that 
were  too  heavy  we  stripped  of  their  wheels,  which  might  be 
extremely  useful. 

But  to  effect  our  purpose,  it  was  necessary  to  spend  sev- 
eral days  in  visits  to  the  vessel,  returning  constantly  in  the 
evening,  enriched  with  every  thing  of  a  portable  nature 
which  the  wreck  contained;  doors,  windows,  locks,  bolts, 
nothing  escaped  our  grasp:  so  that  the  ship  was  now  entire- 
ly emptied,  with  the  exception  of  the  large  cannon,  and 
three  or  four  immense  copper  caldrons.  We  by  degrees 
contrived  to  tie  the  heaviest  articles  to  two  or  three  empty 
casks  well  pitched,  which  would  thus  be  sustained  above 
water.  I  supposed  that  the  wind  and  tide  would  convey 
the  beams  and  timbers  ashore,  and  thus  with  little  pains  we 
should  be  possessed  of  a  sufficient  quantity  of  materials  for 
erecting  a  building  at  some  future  time.  When  these  mea- 
sures  were  taken,  I  came  to  the  resolution  of  blowing  up 
the  wreck,  by  a  process  similar  to  that  with  which  I  had  so 


276  THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON. 

well  succeeded  with  the  pinnace.  We  accordingly  prepared 
a  cask  of  gunpowder,  which  we  left  on  board  for  the  pur- 
pose: we  rolled  it  to  the  place  most  favourable  for  our  views: 
we  made  a  small  opening  in  its  side,  and  at  the  moment  of 
quitting  the  vessel,  we  inserted  a  piece  of  matchwood  which 
we  lighted  at  the  last  moment,  as  before.  We  then  sailed 
with  all  possible  expedition  for  Safety  Bay,  where  we  arriv- 
ed in  a  short  time.  We  could  not,  however,  withdraw  our 
thoughts  from  the  wreck,  an^from  the  expected  explosion, 
for  a  single  moment.  I  had  cut  the  match  a  sufficient  length 
for  us  to  hope  that  she  would  not  go  to  pieces  before  dark. 
I  proposed  to  my  wife  to  have  our  supper  carried  to  a  little 
point  of  land  from  whence  we  had  a  view  of  her,  and  here 
we  waited  for  the  moment  of  her  destruction  wTith  lively  im- 
patience. 

About  the  time  of  nightfall,  a  majestic  rolling  sound  like 
thunder,  accompanied  by  a  column  of  fire  and  smoke,  an- 
nounced that  the  ship,  so  awfully  concerned  with  our  pecu- 
liar destiny,  which  had  brought  us  to  our  present  abode  in 
a  desert,  and  furnished  us  there  with  such  vast  supplies  for 
general  comfort,  was  that  instant  annihilated,  and  withdrawn 
forever  from  the  face  of  man! — At  this  moment,  love  for 
the  country  that  gave  us  birth,  that  most  powerful  sentiment 
of  the  human  heart,  sunk  with  a  new  force  into  ours.  The 
ship  had  disappeared  forever!  Could  we  then  form  a  hope 
ever  to  behold  that  country  more?  We  had  made  a  sort  of 
jubilee  of  witnessing  the  spectacle:  the  boys  had  clapped 
their  hands  and  skipped  about  in  joyful  expectation;  but  the 
noise  was  heard; — the  smoke  and  sparks  were  seen! — while 
the  sudden  change  which  took  place  in  our  minds  could  be 
compared  only  to  the  rapidity  of  these  effects  of  our  concert- 
ed scheme  against  the  vessel.     We  all  observed  a  mourn- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  277 

ful  silence,  and  all  rose,  as  it  were,  by  an  impulse  of  mutual 
condemnation,  and  with  our  heads  sinking  on  our  bosoms, 
and  our  eyes  cast  upon  the  ground,  we  took  the  road  to 
Tent-House. 

My  wife  was  the  only  person  who  was  sensible  of  motives 
for  consolation  in  the  distressing  scene  which  had  been 
passing;  she  was  now  relieved  from  all  the  cruel  fears  for 
our  Safety  in  our  visits  to  a  shattered  wreck,  that  was  liable 
to  fall  to  pieces  during  the  time  we  were  on  board.  From 
this  moment  she  conceived  a  Stronger  partiality  for  our 
island,  and  the  modes  of  life  we  had  adopted. 

A  night's  repose  had  in  some  measure  relieved  the  melan- 
choly of  the  preceding  evening,  and  I  went  rather  early 
in  the  morning  with  the  boys,  to  make  further  observations 
as  to  the  effects  of  this  remarkable  event.  We  perceived 
in  the  water,  and  along  the  shore,  abundant  vestige&  of  the 
departed  wreck;  and  amongst  the  rest,  at  a  certain  dis- 
tance, the  empty  casks,  caldrons,  and  cannon,  all  tied  to- 
gether, and  floating  in  a  large  mass  upon  the  water.  We 
jumped  instantly  into  the  pinnace,  with  the  tub-boat  fasten- 
ed to  it,  and  made  a  way  towards  them  through  the  num- 
berless pieces  of  timber,  Stc.  that  intervened,  and  in  a  little 
time  reached  the  object  of  our  search,  which  from  its  great 
weight  moved  slowly  upon  the  waves.  Fritz,  with  his  ac- 
customed readiness,  flung  some  rope  round  two  four-poun- 
ders, and  contrived  to  fasten  them  to  our  barge;  after  which 
he  secured  also  an  enormous  quantity  of  poles,  laths,  and 
other  useful  articles.  With  this  rich  booty  we  returned  to 
land. 

We  performed  three  more  trips  for  the  purpose  of  bring- 
ing away  more  cannon,  caldrons,  fragments  of  masts,  &c, 
all  of  which  we  deposited  for  present  convenience  in  Safety 


278  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

Bay:  and  now  began  our  most  fatiguing  operations, — the 
removing  such  numerous  and  heavy  stores  from  the  boats 
to  Tent-House.  We  separated  the  cannon  and  the  caldrons 
from  the  tub-raft,  and  from  each  other,  and  left  them  in  a 
place  which  was  accessible  for  the  sledge  and  the  beasts  of 
burden.  With  the  help  of  the  crow  we  succeeded  in  getting 
the  caldrons  upon  the  sledge,  and  in  replacing  the  four 
wheels  we  had  before  taken  from  the  cannon;  and  now  found 
it  easy  to  make  the  cow  and  the  ass  draw  them. 

The  largest  of  the  boilers  or  copper  caldrons  we  found 
of  the  most  essential  use.  We  brought  out  all  our  barrels 
of  gunpowder,  and  placed  them  on  their  ends  in  three  sep- 
arate groups,  at  a  short  distance  from  our  tent;  we  dug  a 
little  ditch  round  the  whole,  to  draw  off  the  moisture  from 
the  ground,  and  then  put  one  of  the  caldrons  turned  upside 
down  upon  each,  which  completely  answered  the  purpose  of 
an  out-house.  The  cannon  were  covered  with  sail-cloth, 
and  upon  this  we  laid  heavy  branches  of  trees;  the  larger 
casks  of  gunpowder  we  prudently  removed  under  a  project- 
ing piece  of  rock,  and  covered  them  with  planks,  till  we 
should  have  leisure  for  executing  the  plan  of  an  ammunition 
store-house,  about  which  we  had  all  become  extremely 
earnest. 

My  wife,  in  taking  a  survey  of  these  our  labours,  made 
the  agreeable  discovery,  that  two  of  our  ducks  and  one  of 
the  geese  had  been  brooding  under  a  large  bush,  and  at  the 
time  were  conducting  their  little  families  to 'the  water.  The 
news  produced  general  rejoicings;  and  the  sight  of  the  lit- 
tle creatures,  so  forcibly  carried  our  thoughts  to  Falcon's 
Stream,  that  we  all  conceived  the  ardent  desire  of  returning 
to  the  society  of  the  numerous  old  friends  we  had  left  there. 
One  sighed  for  his  monkey,  another  for  his  flamingo;  Fran- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  279 

cis  for  his  parrot,  and  his  mother  for  her  poultry-yard,  her 
various  housewifery  accommodations,  and  her  comfortable 
bed.  We  therefore  fixed  the  next  day  for  our  departure, 
and  set  about  the  necessary  preparations. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

A  new  domain. —  The  troop  of  Buffaloes. —  The    Vanquished 

Hero. 

On  entering  our  plantation  of  fruit-trees  forming  the 
avenue  to  Falcon's  Stream,  we  observed  that  they  had  not  a 
vigorous  appearance,  and  that  they  inclined  to  curve  a  little 
in  the  stalk:  we  therefore  resolved  to  support  them  with 
sticks,  and  I  proposed  to  walk  to  the  vicinity  of  Cape  Dis- 
appointment, for  the  purpose  of  cutting  some  bamboos.  I 
had  no  sooner  pronounced  frhe  words,  than  the  three  eldest 
boys  and  their  mother  exclaimed,  at  once,  that  they  would 
accompany  me.  Their  curiosity  had  been  excited  by  our 
accounts  of  the  amusing  objects  we  had  met  with  in  our  vis- 
it to  the  spot:  each  found  a  sound  and  special  reason  why 
he  must  not  fail  to  be  of  the  party.  Our  provision  of  can- 
dles was  nearly  exhausted,  and  a  new  stock  of  berries  must 
therefore  be  procured,  for  my  wife  now  repaired  our  clothes 
by  candle-light,  while  I  employed  myself  in  composing  a 
journal  of  the  events  of  every  day: — Then,  the  sow  had  again 
deserted  us,  and  nothing  could  be  so  probable  as  that  we 
should  find  her  in  the  acorn-wood:  Jack  would  fain  gather 


280  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

some  guavas  for  himself;  and  Francis  must  needs  see  the 
plantation  of  sugar-canes.  In  short,  all  would  visit  this  land 
of  Canaan. 

We  accordingly  fixed  the  following  morning,  and  set  out 
in  full  procession.  For  myself,  I  had  a  great  desire  to  ex- 
plore more  thoroughly  this  part  of  our  island.  I  therefore 
made  some  preparations  for  sleeping,  should  we  find  the  day 
too  short  for  all  we  might  have  to  accomplish:  I  took  the  cart 
instead  of  the  sledge,  having  fixed  some  planks  across  it 
for  Francis  and  his  mother  to  sit  upon  when  they  should  be 
tired:  I  was  careful  to  be  provided  with  the  different  imple- 
ments we  might  want;  some  rope  machinery  I  had  contri- 
ved for  rendering  the  climbing  of  trees  more  easy;  and 
lastly,  some  provisions,  some  water  in  a  gourd-flask,  and 
one  bottle  of  wine  from  the  captain's  store.  When  all  was 
placed  in  the  cart,  I  for  this  time  harnessed  to  it  both  the 
ass  and  the  cow,  as  I  expected  the  load  would  be  increas- 
ed on  our  return;  and  we  set  out,  taking  the  road  of  the  po- 
tato and  manioc  plantations.  Our  first  halt  was  at  the  tree 
of  the  colony  of  birds,  which  I  now  examined  with  more  at- 
tention, and  recollected  to  what  species  they  belonged,  by 
naturalists  named  Loxia   Gregaria  (Sociable  GrossbeakV 

It  was  not  without  much  difficulty  that  we  conducted  the 
cart  through  the  thick  entangled  bushes,  the  most  intri- 
cate of  which  I  everywhere  cut  down,  and  we  helped  to 
push  it  along  with  all  our  strength.  We  succeeded  tolera- 
bly well  at  last;  and  that  the  poor  animals  might  have  time 
to  rest,  we  determined  to  pass  several  hours  in  this  place, 
which  furnished  such  a  variety  of  agreeable  and  useful  ob- 
jects. We  began  by  gathering  a  bag  full  of  the  guavas;  and 
after  regaling  ourselves  plentifully,  we  put  the  remainder 
into  the  cart. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  281 

We  continued  our  way,  and  so#n  arrived  at  the  caout- 
chouc, or  gum-elastic  trees.  I  thought  we  could  not  do 
better  than  to  halt  here,  and  endeavour  to  collect  a  suffi- 
cient quantity  of  the  sap  to  make  the  different  utensils,  and 
the  impenetrable  boots  and  shoes,  as  I  had  before  proposed. 
It  was  with  this  design  that  I  had  taken  care  to  bring  with 
me  several  of  the  most  capacious  of  the  gourd  rinds.  I 
made  deep  incisions  in  the  trunks,  and  fixed  some  large 
leaves  of  trees,  partly  doubled  together  lengthways,  to  the 
place,  to  serve  as  a  sort  of  channel  to  conduct  the  sap  to 
the  vessels  I  had  kept  in  readiness  to  receive  it.  We  had 
not  long  begun  this  process  before  we  perceived  the  sap 
begin  to  run  out  as  white  as  milk,  and  in  large  drops,  so 
that  we  were  not  without  hopes,  by  the  time  of  our  return, 
to  find  the  vessels  full,  and  thus  to  have  obtained  a  suffi- 
cient quantity  of  the  ingredient  for  a  first  experiment. 

We  left  the  sap  running,  and  pursued  our  way,  which  led 
us  to  the  wood  of  cocoa-trees;  from  thence  we  passed  to  the 
left,  and  stopped  half-way  between  the  bamboos  and  the 
sugar-canes,  intending  to  furnish  ourselves  with  a  provision 
of  each.  We  aimed  our  course  so  judiciously,  that  on  clear- 
ing the  skirts  of  tho  wood,  we  found  ourselves  in  an  open 
plain;  with  the  sugar-cane  plantations  on  cur  left  and  on 
•our  right  those  of  bamboo  interspersed  with  various  kinds 
of  palm-trees,  and,  in  front,  the  magnificent  bay  formed  by 
Cape  Disappointment,  which  stretched  far  out  into  the  sea. 

The  prospect  that  now  presented  itself  to  our  view  was  of 
such  exquisite  beauty,  that  we  determined  to  choose  it  for 
our  resting  place,  and  to  make  it  the  central  point  of  every 
excursion  we  should  in  future  make:  we  were  even  more 
than  half  disposed  to  desert  our  pretty  Falcon's  Stream,  and 
transport   our   possessions   hither:   a  moment's    reflection, 

Z 


282  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

however,  betrayed  the  folly  of  quitting  the  thousand  com- 
forts we  had^  there  with  almost  incredible  industry  assem- 
bled; and  we  dismissed  the  thought  with  promising  ourselves-, 
to  include  this  ravishing  spot  ever  more  in  our  projects  for 
excursions.  We  disengaged  the  animals,  that  they  might 
graze  and  refresh  themselves  under  the  shade  of  the  palm- 
trees,  and  sat  down  to  enjoy  our  own  repast,  and  to  converse 
on  the  beauty  of  the  scene. 

It  was  now  evening;  and  as  we  had  determined  to  pass- 
the  night  in  this  en-chanting  spot,  we  began  to  think  of  form- 
ing some  large  branches  of  trees  into  a  sort  of  but,  as  is 
practised  by  the  hunters  in  America,  to  shelter  us  from  the 
dew  and  the  coolness  of  the  air.  While  we  were  thus  en- 
gaged, we  were  suddenly  roused  by  the  loud  braying  of  the 
ass,  which  we  had  left  to  graze  at  a  distance  but  a  short 
time  before.  On  going  to  the  place,  we  saw  him  throwing; 
his  head  in  the  air,  and  kicking  and  prancing  about;  and 
while  we  were  thinking  what  could  be  the  matter,  he  set  ofF 
on  a  full  gallop.  Unfortunately,  Turk  and  Flora,  whom  we 
sent  after  him,  took  the  fancy  of  entering  the  plantation  of 
the  sugar  canes,  while  the  ass  had  preferred  the  direction  of 
the  bamboos  on  the  right.  We  began  to*  fear  the  approach 
of  some  wild  beast  might  have  frightened  the  creature,, 
and  to  think  of  assembling  our  firearms.  In  a  little  time 
the  dogs  returned,  and  showed  no  signs,  by  scenting  the 
ground  or  otherwise,  of  any  pursuit.  I  made  a  turn*  round 
the  hut  to  see  that  all  was  well,  and  then  sallied  forth  with 
Fritz  and  the  two  dogs  in  the  direction  the  ass  had  taken, 
hoping  the  latter  might  be  enabled  to  trace  him  by  the  scent. 

Fatigued,  and  vexed  with  the  loss  of  the  useful  creature,. 
I  entered  the  hut,  which  I  found  complete,  the  boys  having 
covered    it  with   sail-cloth,  and   strewed   branches  on  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  283 

gTOund  for  sleeping,  and  collected  some  reeds  for  making  a 
fire,  which  the  freshness  of  the  evening  air  rendered  agreea- 
ble to  all:  it  served  us  also  for  cooking  our  supper.  When 
all  was  safe,  I  watched  and  replenished  the  fire  till  midnight, 
rather  from  habit  than  the  fear  of  wild  beasts,  and  then  took 
possession  of  the  little  corner  assigned  me  near  my  slumber- 
ing companions. 

The  following  morning  we  breakfasted  on  some  milk  from 
the  cow,  some  boiled  potatoes,  and  a  small  portion  of  Dutch 
cheese,  and  formed  during  our  meal  the  plan  of  the  business 
for  the  day.  It  was  decided  that  one  of  the  boys  and  myself, 
attended  by  the  two  dogs,  should  seek  the  ass  through  the 
bamboo  plantation.  I  took  with  me  the  agile  Jack,  who  was 
•almost  beside  himself  with  joy  at  this  determination. 

We  soon  reached  the  bamboo  plantation,  and  found  means 
to  force  ourselves  along  its  intricate  entanglements.  After 
great  fatigue,  and  when  we  were  on  the  point  of  relinquishing 
all, further  hope,  we  discovered  the  print  of  the  ass's  hoofs  on 
the  soil,  which  inspired  us  with  new  ardour  in  the  pursuit. 
After  spending  a  whole  hour  in  further  endeavours,  we  at 
length,  on  reaching  the  skirts  of  the  plantation,  perceived 
the  sea  in  the  distance,  and  soon  after  found  ourselves  in  an 
open  space,  which  bounded  the  great  bay.  A  considerable 
river  flowed  into  the  bay  at  this  place,  and  we  perceived 
that  the,  ridge  of  rocks  which  we  had  constantly  seen,  ex- 
tended to  the  shore,  and  terminated  in  a  perpendicular  pre- 
cipice, leaving  only  a  narrow  passage  between  the  rocks  and 
the  river,  which  during  every  flux  of  the  tide  must  necessa- 
rily be  under  water,  but  which  at  that  moment  was  dry  and 
passable.  The  probability  that  the  ass  would  prefer  passing 
by  this  narrow  way,  to  the  hazard  of  the  water,  determined 
us  to  follow  in  the  same  path:  we  had  also  some  curiosity  to 


284  THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

ascertain  what  might  be  found  on  the  other  side  of  the  rocks,, 
for  as  yet  we  were  ignorant  whether  they  formed  a  boundary 
to  our  island,  or  divided  it  into  two  portions;  whether  we 
should  see  there  land  or  water.  We  continued  to  advance, 
and  at  length  reached  a  stream  which  issued  foaming  from  a 
large  mass  of  rock,  and  fell  in  a  cascade  into  the  river.  The 
bed  of  this  stream  was  so  deep,  and  its  course  so  rapid,  that% 
we  were  a  long  time  finding  a  part  where  it  might  be  most 
practicable  for  us  to  cross.  When  we.  had  got  to  the  other 
side,  we  found  the  soil  again  sandy,  and  mixed  with  a  fertile 
kind  of  earth:  in  this  place  we  no  longer  saw  naked  rock; 
but  the  print  of  the  ass's  hoofs  were  again  visible  on  the 
ground. 

By  observing  closely,  we  saw  with  astonishment,  the  prints 
of  the  feet  of  other  animals,  much  larger  and  different  in 
many  respects  from  those  of  the  ass.  Our  curiosity  was  so 
strongly  excited,  that  we  resolved  to  follow  the  traees;  and 
they  conducted  us  to  a  plain  at  a  great  distance,  which  pre- 
sented to  our  wondering  eyes  a  terrestrial  paradise.  We 
ascended  a  hill  which  partly  concealed  from  our  view  this 
delicious  scene,  and  then,  with  the  assistance  of  a  glass,  we 
beheld  an  extensive  range  of  country  exhibiting  every  kind 
of  rural  beauty,  and  in  which  a  profound  tranquillity  had 
seemed  to  take  up  its  abode.  To  our  right  appeared  the 
majestic  wall  of  rocks  which  divided  the  island.  Some  of 
these  appeared  to  touch  the  heavens;  others  to  imprint  the 
clouds  with  wild  fantastic  forms,  while  mists,  broken  into 
pieces,  partially  concealed  their  tops.  To  the  left,  a  chain 
of  gently  rising  hills,  the  long  green  verdure  of  which,  tinged 
with  blue,  stretched  as  far  as  the  eye  could  discern,  and 
were  interspersed  at  agreeable  distances  with  little  woods 
of  palm-trees.     The  river  we  had  crossed  flowed  in  a  sei> 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  285 

pentine  course  through  this  exquisite  valley,  presenting  the 
idea  of  a  broad  floating  silver  riband,  while  its  banks  were 
adorned  with  reeds  and  various  aquatic  plants.  I  could 
with  difficulty  take  my  eyes  from  this  enchanting  spectacle, 
and  I  seated  myself  on  the  ground  to  contemplate  and  enjoy 
it  at  my  leisure.  Neither  on  the  plain  nor  on  the  hills  was 
there  the  smallest  trace  of  the  abode  of  man,  nor  of  any  kind 
Qf  cultivation;  it  was  everywhere  a  virgin  soil,  in  all  its 
original  purity;  nothing  endowed  with  life  appeared  to  view, 
excepting  a  few  birds,  which  flew  fearlessly  around  us,  and 
a  quantity  of  brilliantly  coloured  butterflies,  which  the  eye 
frequently  confounded  with  the  different  sorts  of  unknown 
flowers,  which  here  and  there  diversified  the  surface  of  the 
soil. 

By  straining  our  eyes,  however,  as  far  as  we  could  see, 
we  thought  we  perceived  at  a  great  distance  some  specks 
upon  the  landr. that  seemed  to  be  in  motion.  We  hastened 
towards  the  spot;  and  as  we  drew  nearer,  to  our  inexpres- 
sible surprise  beheld  a  pretty  numerous  group  of  animals, 
which  in  the  assemblage  presented  something  like  the  out- 
line of  a  troop  of  horses  or  of  cows.  I  observed  them  some- 
times run  up  to  each  other,  and  then  suddenly  stoop  to 
graze.  Though  we  had  not  lately  met  with  farther  traces 
of  the  ass,  I  was  not  entirely  without  the  hope  of  finding 
him  among  these  animals.  On  a  nearer  approach,  we  per- 
ceived they  were  wild  buffaloes.  This  animal  is  formed  at 
first  sight  to  inspire  the  beholder  with  terror;  it  is  endowed 
with  an  extraordinary  degree  of  strength,  and  two  or  three 
of  them  would  have  been  capable  of  destroying  us  in  a 
moment,  should  they  attack  us.  My  alarm  was  so  great 
that  I  remained  for  a  few  moments  fixed  to  the  spot  like  a 
statue.     By  good  luck,  the  dogs  were  far  behind  us,  and  th§ 


286  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

buffaloes  gave  no  sign  of  fear  or  of  displeasure  at  our  ap- 
proach: they  stood  perfectly  still,  with  their  large  round  eyes 
fixed  upon  us  in  vacant  surprise:  those  which  were  lying 
down  got  up  slowly,  but  not  one  among  them  seemed  to 
have  any  hostile  disposition  towards  us.  The  circumstance 
of  the  dogs'  absence  was  most  likely,  on  this  occasion,  the 
means  of  our  safety;  as  it  was,  we  had  time  to  draw  back 
quietly,  and  prepare  our  firearms.  It  was  not,  however, 
my  intention  to  make  use  of  them  in  any  way  but  for  de- 
fence, being  sensible  that  we  were  unequal  to  the  encounter, 
and  recollecting  also  to  have  read,  that  the  sound  of  a  gun 
drives  the  buffalo  to  a  state  of  desperation.  I  therefore 
thought  only  of  retreating;  and  with  my  poor  Jack,  for 
whom  I  was  more  alarmed  than  for  myself,  was  proceeding 
in  this  way,  when  unfortunately  Turk  and  Flora  ran  up 
to  us  and  we  could  see  were  noticed  by  the  buffaloes. 
The  animals  instantly,  and  all  together,  set  up  such  a  roar  as 
to  make  our  nerves  tremble ;  they  struck  their  horns  and  their 
hoofs  upon  the  ground,  which  they  tore  up  by  pieces  and  scat- 
tered in  the  air.  I  with  horror  foresaw  the  moment  when, 
confounding  us  with  the  dogs,  which  no  doubt  they  mistook 
for  Jackalls,  they  would  seize  upon  and  tear  us  to  pieces. 
Our  brave  Turk  and  Flora,  fearless  of  danger,  ran,  in  spite 
of  all  our  efforts,  into  the  midst  of  them,  and,  according  to 
their  manner  of  attacking,  laid  hold  of  the  ears  of  a  young 
buffalo,  which  happened  to  be  standing  a  few  paces  nearer 
to  us  than  the  rest;  and  though  the  creature  began  a  tre- 
mendous roar  and  motion  with  his  hoofs,  they  held  him  fast, 
and  were  dragging  him  towards  us.  Thus  hostilities  had 
commenced;  and  unless  we  could  resolve  to  abandon  the 
cause  of  our  valiant  defenders,  we  were  now  forced  upon 
the  measure  of  open  war,  which,  considering  the  strength 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  287 

and  number  of  the  enemy,  wore  a  face  of  the  most  pressing 
and  inevitable  danger.  Our  every  hope  seemed  now  to  be 
in  the  chance  of  the  terror  the  buffaloes  would  feel  at  the 
noise  of  our  musketry,  which,  perhaps,  for  the  first  time, 
would  assail  their  organs,  and  most  likely  excite  them  to 
flight.  With,  I  must  confess,  a  palpitating  heart,  and  trem- 
bling hands,  we  fired  both  at  the  same  moment:  the  buffaloes, 
terrified  by  the  sound  and  by  the  smoke,  remained  for  an  in- 
stant motionless,  as  if  struck  by  a  thunderbolt,  and  then 
one  and  all  betook  themselves  to  flight  with  such  incredible 
rapidity,  that  they  were  soon  beyond  the  reach  of  our  sight. 
We  heard  their  loud  roaring  from  a  considerable  distance, 
whi-ch  by  degrees  subsided  into  silence,  and  we  were  left 
with  only  one  of  their  terrific  species  near  us;  this  one,  a 
female,  was  no  doubt  the  mother  of  the  young  buffalo  which 
the  dogs  had  seized  and  still  kept  a  prisoner;  she  had  drawn 
near  on  hearing  its  cries,  and  had  been  wounded  by  our 
guns,  but  not  killed;  the  creature  was  in  a  furious  state: 
after  a  moment's  pause,  she  took  aim  at  the  dogs,  and  with 
her  head  on  the  ground,  as  if  to  guide  her  by  the  scent,  was 
advancing  in  her  rage,  and  would  have  torn  them  to  pieces, 
if  I  had  not  prevented  her  by  firing  upon  her  with  my  double- 
barrelled  gun,  and  thus  putting  an  end  to  her  existence. 

It  was  only  now  that  we  began  to  breathe.  A  few  mo- 
ments before,  death,  in  the  most  horrible  and  inevitable 
form,  seemed  to  stare  us  in  the  face!  But  now  we  might 
hope  that  every  danger  was  over:  I  was  enchanted  with  the 
behaviour  of  my  boy,  who,  instead  of  giving  way  to  fears 
and  lamentations,  as  other  lads  of  his  age  might  have  done, 
had  stood  all  the  time  in  a  firm  posture  by  my  side,  and  had 
fired  with  a  steady  aim  in  silence.  I  bestowed  freely  on 
him  the  commendation  he  had  so  well  deserved,  and  made 


288  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

him  sensible  how  necessary  it  is  in  times  of  danger  to  pre- 
serve a  presence  of  mind,  which  in  many  cases  is  of  itself 
sufficient  to  effect  the  sought-for  deliverance.  The  young 
buffalo  still  remained  a  prisoner  with  his  ears  in  the  mouths 
of  the  dogs,  and  the  pain  occasioned  him  to  be  so  furious, 
that  I  was  fearful  he  might  do  them  some  injury;  I  therefore 
determined  to  advance  and  give  them  what  assistance  I 
might  find  practicable.  To  say  the  truth,  I  scarcely  knew 
in  what  way  to  eiTect  this.  The  buffalo,  though  young,  was 
strong  enough  to  revenge  himself  if  I  were  to  give  the  dogs 
a  sign  to  let  go  his  ears.  I  had  the  power  of  killing  him 
with  a  pistol  at  a  stroke;  but  I  had  a  great  desire  to  preserve 
him  alive,  and  to  tame  him,  that  he  might  be  a  substitute 
for  the  ass,  which  we  had  but  little  hope  of  recovering.  I 
found  myself  in  a  perplexing  state  of  indecision,  when  Jack 
suddenly  interposed  an  effective  means  for  accomplishing 
my  wishes.  He  had  his  string  with  balls  in  his  pocket;  he 
drew  it  out  hastily,  and  making  a  few  steps  backward,  he 
throw  it  so  skilfully  as  to  entangle  the  buffalo  completely, 
and  throw  him  down.  As  I  could  then  approach  him  safe- 
ly, I  tied  his  legs  two  and  two  together  with  a  very  strong 
cord;  the  dogs  released  his  ears,  and  from  this  moment  we 
considered  the  buffalo  as  our  own.  Jack  was  almost  mad 
with  joy.  "  What  a  magnificent  creature !  How  much  bet- 
ter than  the  ass  he  will  look,  harnessed  to  the  cart!  How 
my  mother  and  the  boys  will  be  surprised  and  stare  at  him 
as  we  draw  near!"  repeated  he,  many  and  many  times. 

The  question  was  now,  how  we  were  to  get  the  buffalo 
nome:  having  reflected,  I  conceived  that  the  best  way  would 
be  to  tie  his  two  fore  legs  together  so  tight  that  he  could  not 
run,  yet  loose  enough  for  him  to  walk;  "  and,"  pursued  I, 
"  we  will  next  adopt  the  method  practised  in  Italy:  you  will 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  289 

think  it  somewhat  cruel,  but  the  success  will  be  certain; 
and  it  shall  afterwards  be  our  study  to  make  him  amends 
by  the  kindest  care  and  treatment.  Hold  you  the  cord 
which  confines  his  legs  with  all  your  strength,  that  he  may 
not  be  able  to  move: — I  then  called  Turk  and  Flora,  and 
made  each  again  take  hold  of  the  ears  of  the  animal;  I  took 
from  my  pocket  a  sharp  pointed  knife,  and  taking  hold  of 
the  snout,  I  made  a  hole  in  the  nostril,  into  which  I  quickly 
inserted  the  string,  which  1  immediately  tied  so  closely  to 
a  tree,  that  the  animal  was  prevented  from  the  least  motion 
of  the  head,  which  might  have  inflamed  the  wound  and  in- 
creased his  pain.  I  drew  off  the  dogs  the  moment  the 
operation  was  performed.  The  creature,  thus  rendered 
furious,  would  have  run  away,  but  the  stricture  of  the  legs 
and  the  pain  in  the  nostril  prevented  it.  The  first  attempt 
1  made  to  pull  the  cord,  found  him  docile  and  ready  to  ac- 
commodate his  motions  to  our  designs,  and  I  perceived  that 
we  might  now  begin  our  march,  I  left  him  for  a  short  time 
to  make  some  other  preparations. 

I  was  unwilling  to  leave  so  fine  a  prey  as  the  dead  buffalo 
behind  us:  I  therefore,  after  considering  what  was  to  be 
done,  began  by  cutting  out  the  tongue,  which  I  sprinkled 
with  some  of  the  salt  we  had  in  our  provision-bag:  I  next 
took  off  the  skin  from  the  four  feet,  taking  care  not  to  tear 
it  in  the  operation.  I  remembered  that  the  Americans  use 
these  skins,  which  are  of  a  soft  and  flexible  quality,  as  boots 
and  shoes,  and  I  considered  them  as  precious  articles.  I 
lastly  cut  some  of  the  flesh  of  the  animal  with  the  skin  on, 
and  salted  it,  and  abandoned  the  rest  to  the  dogs,  as  a  re- 
compense for  their  behaviour.  I  then  repaired  to  the  river 
to  wash  myself,  after  which  we  sat  down  under  the  shade 
of  a  large  tree,  and  ate  the  rest  of  our  provisions, 

A  A 


290  THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

As  we  were  not  disposed  to  leave  the  spot  in  a  hurry,  I 
desired  Jack  to  take  the  saw  and  cut  down  a  small  quantity 
of  the  reeds,  which  from  their  enormous  size  might  be  of 
use  to  us.  We  set  to  work,  but  I  observed  that  he  took 
pains  to  choose  the  smallest. — ***  What  shall  we  do/'  said  I, 
"  with  these  small-sized  reeds?  You  are  thinking,  I  pre- 
sume, of  a  bag-pipe,  to  announce  a  triumphal  arrival  to 
our  companions?" — "You  are  mistaken,  father,"  answered 
Jack;  "  I  am  thinking  of  some  candlesticks  for  my  mother, 
who  will  set  so  high  a  value  on  them!" 

"This  is  a  good  thought,"  said  I;  "I  am  pleased  both 
with  the  kindness  and  the  readiness  of  your  invention,  and 
I  will  assist  you  to  empty  the  reeds  without  breaking  them: 
if  we  should  not  succeed,  at  least  we  know  where  to  provide 
ourselves  with  more." 

We  had  so  many  and  such  heavy  articles  to  remove,  that 
I' dismissed  for  that  day  all  thoughts  of  looking  further  for 
the  ass.  I  began  now  to  think  of  untying  the  young  buffa- 
lo;  and  on  approaching  him,  perceived  with  pleasure  that 
he  was  asleep,  which  afforded  me  a  proof  that  his  wound 
was  not  extremely  painful.  As  I  began  to  pull  him  gently 
with  the  string,  he  gave  a  start;  but  he  afterwards  followed 
me  without  resistance.  I  fastened  another  string  to  his 
horns,  and  led  him  on  by  drawing  both  together;  and  he 
performed  the  journey  with  so  unexpected  a  docility,  that 
to  ease  ourselves  of  a  part  of  our  heavy  burdens,  we  even 
ventured  on  the  measure  of  fastening  the  bundles  of  reeds 
upon  his  back,  and  upon  these  we  laid  the  salted  pieces  of 
the  buffalo.  The  creature  did  not  seem  aware  that  he  was 
carrying  a  load;  he  followed  in  our  path,  as  before,  and  thus 
on  the  first  day  of  our  acquaintance  he  rendered  us  an  es- 
sential service. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  291 

111  a  short  time  we  found  ourselves  once  more  at  the  nar- 
row passage  between  the  torrent  and  the  precipice  of  the 
rocks,  which  I  have  already  mentioned.  I  had  tied  the 
young  buffalo  to  a  tree  near  the  cascade,  without  remarking 
of  What  species  it  might  be;  when  I  went  to  release  him,  I 
saw  that  it  was  a  kind  of  small  palm-tree,  and  on  looking 
about  me,  I  also  observed  some  other  palm-trees,  which  I 
had  not  before  met  with.  One  of  the  kinds,  I  now  remark- 
ed, was  from  ten  to  twelve  feet  in  height;  its  leaves  were 
armed  with  thorns,  and  it  bore  a  fruit  resembling  a  small 
cucumber  in  form,  but  which  at  this  time  was  immature,  so 
that  we  could  not  taste  it.  The  second,  which  was  smaller, 
was  also  thorny;  it  was  now  in  blossom,  and  had  no  fruit.  I 
suspected  that  the  first  of  these  was  the  little  royal  palm, 
sometimes  called  aiviva,  or  Adam's  needle;  and  the  other,  the 
dwarf  palm.  I  resolved  to  avail  myself  of  both,  for  further 
fortifying  my  enclosure  at  Tent-House,  and  also  to  protect 
the  outer  side  of  the  narrow  pass  immediately  over  the  tor- 
rent of  the  cascade.  I  determined  to  return  and  plant  a 
line  of  them  there,  as  close  to  each  other  as  the  considera- 
tion of  their  growth  would  allow;  for  my  intention,  of  course, 
was  to  effect  this  by  means  of  the  young  shoots,  which  pre- 
sented themselves  in  great  abundance:  we  also  hoped  by 
that  time  to  find  their  fruit  ripe,  and  to  ascertain  their  kind. 
"W  e  repassed  the  river  in  safety,  and  accompanied  by  the 
agreeable  sounds  of  its  foaming  cascades,  we  regained  the 
narrow  pass  at  the  turn  of  the  rocks.  We  proceeded  with 
caution,  and  when  safe  on  the  other  side,  we  thought  of 
quickening  our  pace  to  arrive  the  sooner  at  the  hut. 

The  first  solicitudes  about  health  and  safety  being  an- 
swered, we  entered  upon  the  narrative  of  our  adventures; 
when  question  after  question  was  so  rapidly  proposed  to  us, 


292  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

that  we,  on  our  parts,  were  obliged  to  ask  for  the  necessa- 
ry time  for  our  replies.  All  agreed  that  our  success  with  the 
buffalo  was  the  most  extraordinary  of  our  achievements:  all 
longed  for  the  morning,  when  they  might  take  their  fill  of 
looking  at  the  spirited  creature  we  had  brought  with  us. 
The  day  concluded  with  supper,  and  sound  repose. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

The  Malabar  Eagle; — Sago  Manufactory ; — Bees. 

My  wife  the  next  morning  began  the  conversation.  She 
told  me  that  the  boys  had  been  good  and  diligent;  that 
they  had  ascended  Cape  Disappointment  with  her,  and  had 
gathered  wood,  and  made  some  torches  for  the  night 
and,  what  seemed  almost  incredible  had  ventured  to  fell 
and  bring  down  an  immense  palm-tree.  It  lay  prostrate 
on  the  ground,  and  covered  a  space  of  at  least  seventy 
feet  in  length.  To  effect  their  purpose,  Fritz  had  got  up 
the  tree  with  a  long  rope,  which  he  fastened  tight  to  the 
top  of  it.  As  soon  as  he  had  come  down  again,  he  and  Er- 
nest worked  with  the  axe  and  saw  to  cut  it  through.  When 
it  was  nearly  divided,  they  cautiously  managed  its  fall  with 
the  rope,  and  in  this  manner  they  succeeded.  Fritz  was  in 
high  spirits  too  on  another  account:  he  brought  me  on  his 
wrist  a  young  bird  of  prey,  of  the  most  beauteous  plumage; 
he  had  taken  it  from  the  nest  in  one  of  the  rocks  near  Cape 
Disappointment.     Very  young  as  the  bird  was,  it  had  already 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  293 

all  its  feathers,  though  they  had  not  yet  received  their  full 
colouring;  it  answered  to  the  description  I  had  read  of  the 
beautiful  eagle  of  Malabar,  and  I  viewed  it  with  the  admira- 
tion it  was  entitled  to: — meeting  with  one  of  these  birds  is 
thought  a  lucky  omen ;  and  it  being  neither  large  nor  ex- 
pensive in  its  food,  I  was  desirous  to  keep  it  and  train  it  like 
a  falcon,  to  pursue  smaller  birds.  Fritz  had  already  cover- 
ed its  eyes  and  tied  a  string  to  its  foot;  and  I  advised  him  to 
hold  it  often,  and  for  a  length  of  time,  on  his  hand,  and  to 
tame  it  with  hunger,  as  falconers  do. 

When  all  the  narratives  were  concluded,  I  ordered  a  fire 
to  be  lighted,  and  a  quantity  of  green  wood  to  be  put  on  it, 
for  the  purpose  of  raising  a  thick  smoke,  over  which  I  meant 
to  hang  the  buffalo  meat  I  had  salted,  to  dry  and  preserve  it 
for  our  future  use.  The  young  buffalo  was  beginning  to 
browse,  and  we  gave  him  also  a  little  of  the  cow's  milk;  and 
in  a  few  days  we  fed  him  with  a  heap  of  sliced  potatoes, 
which  he  greedily  devoured;  and  this  led  us  to  conclude 
that  the  pains  from  the  wound  in  his  nose  had  subsided,  and 
that  he  would  soon  become  tame. 

The  morning  of  this  day  was  spent  in  again  talking  over 
our  late  extraordinary  adventures;  we  left  our  meat  suspend- 
ed over  the  smoke  of  the  fires  during  our  sleep;  we  tied  the 
young  buffalo  by  the  side  of  the  cow,  and  were  pleased  to 
see  them  agree  and  bid  fair  to  live  in  peace  together.  At 
night  the  dogs  were  set  upon  the  watch.  Fritz  resolved  to 
go  to  bed  with  his  eaglet  fastened  on  his  wrist,  and  its  eyes 
still  bound:  it  remained  in  this  state  throughout  the  nig  it 
without  disturbing  its  master.  The  time  of  repose  elapsed 
so  calmly,  that  none  of  us  awoke  to  keep  in  the  torch-lights, 
which  now  for  the  first  time  the  industry  of  the  boys  had  sup- 
plied us  with,  and  we  did  not  get  up  till  after  sunrise.     After 


294  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

a  moderate  breakfast,  I  chanted  the  accustomed  summons 
for  our  setting  out;  but  my  young  ones  had  some  projects  in 
their  heads,  and  neither  they  nor  their  mother  were  just  then 
in  the  humour  to  obey  me. 

"  Let  us  reflect  a  little  first,"  said  my  wife:  "  as  we  had  so 
much  difficulty  in  felling  the  palm-tree,  would  it  not  be  a 
pity  to  lose  our  labour,  by  leaving  it  in  this  place?  Ernest 
assures  me  it  is  a  sago-tree ;  if  so,  the  pith  would  be  an  ex- 
cellent ingredient  for  our  soups.  Do,  my  dear,  examine  it, 
and  let  us  see  if  in  any  way  we  can  turn  it  to  account." 

I  found  she  was  in  the  right:  but  in  that  case  it  was  ne- 
cessary to  employ  a  day  in  the  business;  since,  to  lay  open 
from  one  end  to  the  other  a  tree  of  such  a  length  and  sub- 
stance, was  no  trivial  task.  I  however  consented;  as,  inde- 
pendent of  the  use  of  the  farinaceous  pith,  I  could,  by 
emptying  it,  obtain  two  handsome  and  large  troughs  for  the 
conveyance  of  water  from  Jackal's  river  to  my  wife's  kitchen- 
garden  at  Tent-House,  and  thence  to  my  new  plantations  of 
trees. 

Fritz. — One  of  the  halves,  father,  will  answer  that  pur- 
pose, and  the  other  will  serve  as  a  conduit  for  our  little  stream 
from  Falcon's  Nest  into  my  pretty  basin  lined  with  tortoise- 
shell;  we  then  shall  be  constantly  regaled  with  the  agreea- 
ble view  of  a  fountain  close  to  our  dwelling: — I  fancy  it 
now  before  my  eyes,  and  that  I  see  its  course.  "  And  I,  for 
my  part,"  said  Ernest,  "  long  for  a  sight  of  the  sago  formed 
into  small  grains,  as  I  have  seen  it  in  Europe." 

I  now  desired  them  to  bring  me  the  graters  they  had  used 
for  the  manioc,  and  observed  that  they  had  to  assist  me  in 
raising  the  palm-tree  from  the  ground,  which  must  be  done, 
continued  I,  by  fixing  at  each  end  two  small  cross  pieces  or 
props  to  support  it;  to  split  it  open  as  it  lies  would  be  a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  295 

work  of  too  much  labour:  this  done,  I  shall  want  several 
wooden  wedges  to  keep  the  cleft  open  while  I  am  sawing  it, 
and  afterwards  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water.  "There  is 
the  difficulty,"  said  my  wife;  "  our  Falcon's  Stream  is  too 
far  off,  and  we  have  not  yet  discovered  any  spring  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  this  place." 

Ernest. — That  is  of  no  consequence,  mother;  I  have  seen 
hereabouts  so  great  an  abundance  of  the  plants  which  con- 
tain water,  that  we  need  not  be  at  a  loss;  for  they  will  fully 
supply  us,  if  I  could  only  contrive  to  get  vessels  enough  to 
hold  it. 

We  now  produced  the  enormous  reeds  we  had  brought 
home,  which  being  hollow,  would  answer  the  purpose  of 
vessels;  and  as  some  time  was  required  to  draw  off  the 
water  from  such  small  tubes,  he  and  Francis  at  once  set  to 
work;  they  cut  a  number  of  the  plants,  which  they  placed, 
slantingly  over  the  brim  of  a  vessel,  and  whilst  that  was 
filling,  they  were  preparing  another.  The  rest  of  us  got 
round  the  tree,  and  with  our  united  strength  we  soon  suc- 
ceeded in  raising  the  heavy  trunk,  and  the  top  of  it  was 
then  sawed  off.  We  next  began  to  split  it  through  the 
whole  length,  and  this  the  softness  of  the  wood  enabled  us 
to  effect  with  little  trouble.  We  soon  reached  the  pith  or 
marrow  that  fills  up  the  middle  of  the  trunk  the  whole  of 
its  length.  When  divided,  we  laid  one  half  on  the  ground, 
and  we  pressed  the  pith  together  with  our  hands,  so  as 
to  make  temporary  room  for  the  pith  of  the  other  half  to 
the  trunk,  which  rested  still  on  the  props.  We  wished  to 
empty  it  entirely,  that  we  might  employ  it  as  a  kneading- 
trough,  leaving  merely  enough  of  the  pith  at  both  ends  of 
prevent  a  running  out;  and  then  we  proceeded  to  form  our 
paste. 


£96  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

My  young  manufacturers  fell  joyfully  to  work:  they 
brought  water,  and  poured  it  gradually  into  the  trough, 
whilst  we  mixed  it  with  the  flour.  In  a  short  time  the 
paste  appeared  sufficiently  fermented;  I  then  made  an 
aperture  at  the  bottom  of  the  grater  on  its  outside,  and 
pressed  the  paste  strongly  with  my  hand;  the  farinaceous 
parts  passed  with  ease  through  the  small  holes  of  the  gra- 
ter, and  the  ligneous  parts  which  did  not  pass  were  thrown 
aside  in  a  heap,  in  the  hope  that  mushrooms,  &c.  might 
spring  from  them.  My  boys  were  in  readiness  to  receive 
in  the  reed  vessels  what  fell  from  the  grater,  and  conveyed 
it  directly  to  their  mother,  whose  business  was  to  spread  out 
the  small  grains  in  the  sun  upon  sailcloth,  for  the  purpose 
of  drying  them.  Thus  we  procured  a  good  supply  of  a 
wholesome  and  pleasant  food;  and  should  have  had  a  larger 
stock  of  it,  had  we  not  been  restricted  as  to  time;  but  the 
privilege  of  renewing  the  process  at  pleasure,  by  felling  a 
sago-tree,  added  to  some  impatience  to  take  home  our  two 
pretty  conduits,  and  employ  them  as  proposed,  prompted  us 
to  expedite  the  business.  The  paste  which  remained  was 
thrown  upon  the  mushroom-bed,  and  watered  well  to  pro- 
mote a  fermentation. 

We  next  employed  ourselves  in  loading  the  cart  with 
our  tools  and  the  two  halves  of  the  tree.  Night  coming 
on,  we  retired  to  our  hut,  where  we  enjoyed  our  usual  re- 
pose, and  early  next  morning  were  ready  to  return  to  Fal- 
con's Stream.  Our  buffalo  now  commenced  his  service, 
yoked  with  the  cow;  he  supplied  the  want  of  the  ass,  and 
was  very  tractable:  it  is  true,  I  led  him  by  the  cord  in  his 
nose,  and  thus  restrained  him  whenever  he  was  disposed  to 
deviate  from  his  duty. 

We  returned  the  same  way  as  we  came,  in  order  to  load 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  297 

the  cart  with  a  provision  of  berries,  wax,  and  elastic  gum.  I 
sent  forward  Fritz  and  Jack  as  a  vanguard,  with  one  of 
the  dogs;  they  were  to  cut  an  ample  road  through  the  bush- 
es for  our  cart.  The  two  water  conductors,  which  were 
very  long,  produced  numerous  difficulties,  and  somewhat 
impeded  our  progress.  We  reached  the  wax  and  gum  trees 
with  tolerable  speed  and  without  any  accident,  and  halted 
to  place  our  sacks  of  berries  in  the  cart.  The  elastic  gum 
had  not  yielded  as  much  as  I  expected,  from  the  too  rapid 
thickening  caused  by  an  ardent  sun.  We  obtained  how- 
ever about  a  quart,  which  sufficed  for  the  experiment  of  the 
impenetrable  boots  I  had  so  long  desired. 

We  set  out  again,  still  preceded  by  our  pioneers,  who 
cleared  the  way  for  us  through  the  little  wood  of  guavas. 
Suddenly  we  heard  a  dreadful  noise,  which  came  from  our 
vanguard,  and  beheld  Fritz  and  Jack  hastening  towards  us. 
I  began  now  to  fear  a  tiger  or  panther  was  near  at  hand,  or 
had  perhaps  attacked  them.  Turk  began  to  bark  so  fright- 
fully, and  Flora  joined  in  so  hideous  a  yell,  that  I  prepared 
myself  for  a  bloody  conflict.  I  advanced  at  the  head  of  my 
troop  to  the  assistance  of  my  high-mettled  dogs,  who  ran 
furiously  up  to  a  thicket,  where  they  stopped,  and  with  their 
noses  to  the  ground,  and  almost  breathless,  strove  to  enter 
it.  I  had  no  doubt  some  terrible  animal  was  lurking  there; 
and  Fritz,  who  had  seen  it  through  the  leaves,  confirmed 
my  suspicions ;  he  said  it  was  about  the  size  of  the  young 
buffalo,  and  that  his  hair  was  black  and  shaggy.  I  was 
going  to  fire  at  it  promiscuously  in  the  thicket,  when  Jack, 
who  had  thrown  himself  on  his  face  on  the  ground  to  have 
a  better  view  of  the  animal,  got  up  in  a  fit  of  laughter — "  It 
is  only,"  exclaimed  he,  "our  old  sow,  who  is  never  tired 
of  playing  off  her  tricks  upon  us."     Half  vexed,  half  laugh- 


298  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

ing,  wo  broke  into  the  midst  of  the  thicket,  where  in  reality 
we  found  our  old  companion  stretched  supinely  on  the  earth, 
but  by  no  means  in  a  state  of  dreary  solitude;  she  had  round 
her  seven  little  creatures,  which  had  been  littered  a  few 
days,  and  were  sprawling  about,  contending  with  each 
other  for  the  best  place  near  their  mother  for  a  hearty  meal. 
This  discovery  gave  us  considerable  satisfaction,  and  we 
all  greeted  the  good  matron,  who  seemed  to  recollect  and 
welcome  us  with  a  sociable  kind  of  grunting,  while  she  lick- 
ed her  young  without  any  ceremony  or  show  of  fear.  And 
now  a  general  consultation  took  place — should  this  new 
family  be  left  where  we  found  it,  or  conveyed  to  Falcon's 
Stream?  Opinions  being  at  variance,  it  was  decided  that  for 
the  present  they  should  keep  quiet  possession  of  their  retreat. 
We  then,  so  many  adventures  ended,  pursued  our  road, 
and  arrived  at  Falcon's  Stream  in  safety,  experiencing  what 
is  so  generally  true,  that  home  is  always  dear  and  sacred 
to  the  heart,  and  anticipated  with  delight.  All  was  in  due 
order,  and  our  animals  welcomed  our  return  in  their  own 
jargon  and  manner,  but  which  did  not  fail  to  be  expressive 
of  their  satisfaction  in  seeing  us  again.  We  threw  them 
some  of  the  food  they  were  most  partial  to,  which  they  greed- 
ily accepted,  and  then  voluntarily  went  back  to  their  usual 
stand.  It  was  necessary  to  practise  a  measure  dictated  by 
prudence,  which  was  to  tie  up  the  buffalo  again,  to  inure  it 
by  degrees  to  confinement;  and  the  handsome  Malabar 
eagle  shared  the  same  fate:  Fritz  chose  to  place  it  near  the 
parrot  on  the  root  of  a  tree ;  he  fastened  it  with  a,  piece  of 
packthread,  of  sufficient  length  to  allow  it  free  motion,  and 
uncovered  its  eyes;  till  then  the  bird  had  been  tolerably 
quiet;  but  the  instant  it  was  restored  to  light  it  fell  into  a 
species  of  rage  that  surprised  us;  it  proudly  raised  its  head, 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  299 

its  feathers  became  ruffled,  and  its  eyeballs  seemed  to  whirl 
in  their  orbits,  and  dart  out  vivid  lightnings.  All  the  poul- 
try were  terrified  and  fled;  but  the  poor  luckless  parrot  was 
too  near  the  sanguinary  creature  to  escape.  Before  we 
were  aware  of  the  danger,  it  was  seized  and  mangled  by  the 
formidable  hooked  beak  of  the  eagle.  Fritz  vented  his  an- 
ger in  loud  and  passionate  reproaches;  he  would  have  kill- 
ed the  murderer  on  the  spot,  had  not  Ernest  ran  up  and 
entreated  him  to  spare  its  life:  "Parrots,"  said  he,  "we 
shall  find  in  plenty,  but  never  perhaps  so  beauteous,  so  mag- 
nificent a  bird  as  this  eagle,  which,  as  father  observes,  we 
may  train  for  hawking.  You  may,  too,  blame  only  yourself 
for  the  parrot's  death; — why  did  you  uncover  his  eyes?  I 
could  have  told  you  that  falconers  keep  them  covered  six 
weeks,  till  they  are  completely  tamed.  But  now,  brother, 
let  me  have  the  care  of  him;  let  me  manage  the  unruly 
fellow;  he  shall  soon,  in  consequence  of  the  methods  I  shall 
use,  be  as  tractable  and  submissive  as  a  new-born  puppy." 

Fritz  refused  to  part  with  his  eagle,  and  Ernest  did  not 
long  oppose  giving  him  the  information  he  wanted: — "I 
have  read,"  said  he,  "somewhere,  that  the  Caribs  puff  to- 
bacco smoke  into  the  nostrils  of  the  birds  of  prey  and  of  the 
parrots  they  catch,  until  they  are  giddy  and  almost  sense- 
less;— this  stupefaction  over,  they  are  no  longer  wild  and 
untractable." 

Fritz  resolved  on  the  experiment:  he  took  some  tobacco 
and  a  pipe,  of  which  we  had  plenty  in  the  sailors'  chests,  and 
began  to  smoke,  at  the  same  time  gradually  approaching 
the  unruly  bird.  As  soon  as  it  was  somewhat  composed, 
he  replaced  the  fillet  over  the  eyes,  and  smoked  close  to  its 
beak  and  nostrils  so  effectually,  that  it  became  motionless 
on  the  spot,  and  had  the  exact  air  of  a  stuffed  bird.     Fritz 


300  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

thought  it  dead,  and  was  inclined  to  be  angry  with  his 
brother;  but  I  told  him  it  would  not  hold  on  the  perch  if  it 
were  lifeless,  and  that  its  head  alone  was  affected; — and  so 
it  proved.  The  favourite  came  to  itself  by  degrees,  and 
made  no  noise  when  its  eyes  were  unbound;  it  looked  at  us 
with  an  air  of  surprise,  but  void  of  fury,  and  grew  tamer  and 
calmer  every  day.  The  care  of  the  monkey  was  now  by  all 
adjudged  to  Ernest  as  a  reward,  and  he  took  formal  posses- 
sion of  it,  and  made  it  lie  down  near  him. 

We  next  began  a  business  which  we  had  long  determined 
on;  it  was  to  plant  bamboos  close  to  all  the  young  trees,  to 
support  them  in  their  growth.  We  had  our  cart  loaded 
with  canes  in  readiness,  and  a  large  pointed  iron  to  dig 
holes  in  the  ground. 

We  began  our  work  at  the  entrance  of  the  avenue  nearest 
to  Falcon's  Stream.  The  walnut,  chestnut,  and  cherry-trees 
we  had  planted  in  a  regular  line  and  at  equal  distances, 
we  found  disposed  to  bend  considerably  to  one  side.  Being 
the  strongest,  I  took  the  task  of  making  holes  with  the  imple- 
ment upon  myself,  which,  as  the  soil  was  light,  I  easily  per- 
formed. The  boys  selected  the  bamboos,  cut  them  of  equal 
lengths,  and  pointed  the  ends  to  go  into  the  ground.  When 
they  were  well  fixed,  we  threw  up  the  earth  compactly 
about  them,  and  fastened  the  sapling  by  the  branches  to 
them  with  some  long  straight  tendrils  of  a  plant  which  we 
found  near  the  spot.  In  the  midst  of  our  exertions  we 
entered  into  a  conversation  respecting  the  culture  of  trees. 
Till  then  my  boys  had  only  thought  of  eating  fruits,  without 
giving  themselves  much  trouble  about  their  production;  but 
now  their  curiosity  was  excited,  and  they  asked  a  thousand 
questions,  which  I  answered  as  well  as  I  could. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  301 

Towards  evening,  a  keen  appetite  hastened  our  return 
to  Falcon's  Stream,  where  we  found  an  excellent  and  plenti- 
ful supper  prepared  by  our  good  and  patient  steward. 

When  the  sharpness  of  hunger  was  appeased,  a  new 
subject  was  introduced,  which  I  and  my  wife  had  been  think- 
ing of  for  some  time:  she  found  it  difficult,  and  even  dan- 
gerous, to  ascend  and  descend  our  tree  with  a  rope  ladder: 
we  never  went  there  but  on  going  to  bed,  and  each  time  felt 
an  apprehension  that  one  of  the  children,  who  scrambled 
up  like  cats,  might  make  a  false  step,  and  perhaps  be  lamed 
forever:  bad  weather  might  come  on,  and  compel  us  for  a 
long  time  together  to  seek  an  asylum  in  our  at  rial  apartment, 
E.nd  consequently  to  ascend  and  descend  oftener. 

My  wife  had  repeatedly  applied  to  me  to  remedy  this  evil, 
and  my  own  anxiety  had  often  made  me  reflect  if  the  thing 
were  really  possible.  A  staircase  on  the  outside  was  not 
to  be  thought  of;  the  considerable  height  of  the  tree  render- 
ed  that  impracticable,  as  I  had  nothing  to  rest  it  on,  and 
should  be  at  a  loss  to  find  beams  to  sustain  it;  but.  I  had  for 
some  time  formed  the  idea  of  constructing  winding  stairs 
within  the  immense  trunk  of  the  tree,  if  it  should  happen  to 
be  hollow,  or  I  could  contrive  to  make  it  so:  I  had  heard  the 
boys  talking  of  a  hollow  in  our  tree,  and  of  a  swarm  of  bees 
issuing  from  it,  and  I  now,  therefore,  went  to  examine  wheth- 
er the  cavity  extended  to  the  roots,  or  what  its  circumference 
might  be.  The  boys  seized  the  idea  with  ardour;  they 
sprang  up,  and  climbed  to  the  tops  of  the  roots  like  squirrels, 
to  strike  at  the  trunk  with  axes,  and  to  judge  from  the  sound 
how  far  it  was  hollow;  but  they  soon  paid  dearly  for  their 
attempt;  the  whole  swarm  of  bees,  alarmed  at  the  noise  made 
against  their  dwelling,  issued  forth,  buzzing  with  fury,  at- 


302  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

tacked  the  little  disturbers,  began  to  sting  them,  stucli  to 
their  hair  and  clothes,  and  soon  put  them  to  flight,  uttering 
lamentable  cries.  My  wife  and  I  had  some  trouble  to  stop 
the  course  of  their  uproar,  and  cover  their  little  wounds  with 
fresh  earth  to  allay  the  smart.  Jack,  whose  temper  was  on 
all  occasions  rash,  had  struck  fiercely  upon  the  bees'  nest, 
and  was  more  severely  attacked  by  them  than  the  rest:  it  wa3 
necessary,  so  serious  was  the  injury,  to  cover  the  whole  of 
his  face  with  linen.  The  less  active  Ernest  got  up  the  last, 
and  was  the  first  to  run  off  when  he  saw  the  consequences, 
and  thus  avoided  any  further  injury  than  a  sting  or  two;  but 
some  hours  elapsed  before  the  other  boys  could  open  their 
eyes,  or  be  in  the  least  relieved  from  the  acute  pain  that  had 
been  inflicted.  When  they  grew  a  little  better,  the  desire  of 
being  revenged  of  the  insects  that  had  so  roughly  used  them 
had  the  ascendant  in  their  minds:  they  teased  me  to  hasten  the 
measures  for  getting  everything  in  readiness  for  obtaining 
possession  of  their  honey.  The  bees  in  the  meantime  were 
still  buzzing  furiously  round  the  tree.  I  prepared  tobacco, 
a  pipe,  some  clay,  chisels,  hammers,  &c.  I  took  the  large 
gourd  long  intended  for  a  hive,  and  I  fitted  a  place  for  it,  by 
nailing  a  piece  of  board  on  a  branch  of  the  tree;  I  made  a 
straw  roof  for  the  top,  to  screen  it  from  the  sun  and  rain; 
and  as  all  this  took  up  more  time  than  I  was  aware  of,  we 
deferred  the  attack  of  the  fortress  to  the  following  day,  and 
got  ready  for  a  sound  sleep,  which  completed  the  cure  of  my 
wounded  patients. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON.  303 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

Treatment   of   Bees ;  —  Staircase ;  —  Training   of   various 
Animals;  — Manufactures,  Sfc. 

Next  morning,  almost  before  dawn,  all  were  up  and  in 
motion;  the  bees  had  returned  to  their  cells,  and  I  stopped 
the  passages  with  clay,  leaving  only  a  sufficient  aperture 
for  the  tube  of  my  pipe.  I  then  smoked  as  much  as  was 
requisite  to  stupify,  without  killing  the  little  warlike  crea- 
tures. Not  having  a  cap  with  a  mask,  such  as  bee-catchers 
usually  wear,  nor  even  gloves,  this  precaution  was  necessa- 
ry. At  first  a  humming  was  heard  in  the  hollow  of  the  tree, 
and  a  noise  like  a  gathering  tempest,  which  died  away  by 
degrees.  All  was  become  calm,  and  I  withdrew  my  tube 
without  the  appearance  of  a  single  bee.  Fritz  had  got  up 
by  me:  we  then  began  with  a  chisel  and  a  small  axe  to  cut 
out  of  the  tree,  under  the  bees'  hole  of  entrance,  a  piece 
three  feet  square.  Before  it  was  entirely  separated,  I  re- 
peated the  fumigation,  lest  the  stupefaction  produced  by  the 
first  smoking  should  have  ceased,  or  the  noise  we  had  been 
just  making  revived  the  bees.  As  soon  as  I  supposed  them 
lulled  again,  I  separated  from  the  trunk  the  piece  I  had  cut 
out,  producing  as  it  were  the  aspect  of  a  window,  through 
which  the  inside  of  the  tree  was  laid  open  to  view;  and  we 
were  filled  at  once  with  joy  and  astonishment  on  beholding 
the  immense  and  wonderful  work  of  this  colony  of  insects. 
There  was  such  a  stock  of  wax  and  honey,  that  we  feared 
our  vessels  would  be  insufficient  to  contain  it.  The  whole 
interior  of  the  tree  was  lined  with  fine  honey-combs:  I  cut 


304  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

them  off  with  care,  and  put  them  in  the  gourds  the  boys 
constantly  supplied  me  with.  When  I  had  somewhat  clear- 
ed the  cavity,  I  put  the  upper  combs,  in  which  the  bees  had 
assembled  in  clusters  and  swarms,  into  the  gourd  which  wa3 
to  serve  as  a  hive,  and  placed  it  on  the  plank  I  had  purpose- 
ly raised.  I  came  down,  bringing  with  me  the  rest  of  the 
honey-combs,  with  which  I  filled  a  small  cask,  previously 
well  washed  in  the  stream,  Some  I  kept  out  for  a  treat  at 
dinner;  and  had  the  barrel  carefully  covered  with  cloths 
and  planks,  that  the  bees,  when  attracted  by  the  smell, 
might  be  unable  to  get  at  it.  We  assembled  round  the  table, 
and  regaled  ourselves  plentifully  with  the  delicious  treat. 
My  wife  then  put  by  the  remainder;  and  I  proposed  to  my 
sons  to  go  back  to  the  tree,  to  prevent  the  bees  from  swarm- 
ing again  there  on  being  roused  from  their  stupor,  as  they 
would  not  have  failed  to  do,  but  for  the  precaution  I  took 
of  passing  a  board  at  the  aperture,  and  burning  a  few  hand- 
fuls  of  tobacco  on  it,  the  smell  and  smoke  of  which  drove 
them  back  whenever  they  attempted  to  return.  At  length 
they  desisted,  and  became  gradually  reconciled  to  their  new 
residence,  where  their  queen  no  doubt  had  settled  herself. 
I  took  this  opportunity  to  relate  to  my  children  all  I  had 
read,  in  the  interesting  work  by  Mr.  Huber  of  Geneva,  of 
the  queen  bee,  this  beloved  and  respected  mother  of  her 
subjects,  who  take  care  of  and  guard  her,  work  for  her, 
nourish  the  rising  swarms,  make  the  cells  in  which  they  are 
to  lodge,  prepare  others  of  a  different  structure,  as  well  as 
nutriment  for  the  young  queens  destined  to  lead  forth  the 
fresh  colonies.  These  accounts  highly  entertained  my 
youthful  auditory,  who  almost  regretted  having  molested 
the  repose  of  a  fine  peaceable  kingdom  that  had  flourished 
so  long  without  interruption  in  the  huge  trunk.     I  now  ad- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  305 

vised  that  all  should  watch  during  the  night,  over  the  whole 
provision  of  honey  obtained  while  the  bees  were  torpid, 
who,  when  recovered,  would  not  tail  to  be  troublesome,  and 
come  in  legions  to  get  back  to  their  property;  and  to  this 
end  we  threw  ourselves  on  our  beds,  in  our  clothes,  to  take 
an  early  doze:  on  awakening  about  nightfall,  we  found  the 
bees  quiet  in  the  gourd,  or  settled  in  clusters  upon  near 
branches,  so  we  went  expeditiously  to  business.  The  cask 
of  honey  was  emptied  into  a  kettle,  except  a  few  prime 
combs,  which  we  kept  for  daily  consumption;  the  remainder, 
mixed  with  a  little  water,  was  set  over  a  gentle  fire,  and 
reduced  to  a  liquid  consistence,  strained,  and  squeezed 
through  a  bag,  and  afterwards  poured  back  into  the  cask, 
which  was  left  upright,  and  uncovered  all  night  to  cool.  In 
the  morning  the  wax  was  entirely  separated,  and  had  risen 
to  the  surface  in  a  compact  and  solid  cake  that  was  easily 
removed;  beneath  w:as  the  purest,  most  beautiful  and  deli- 
cate honey  that  could  be  seen:  the  cask  was  then  carefully 
headed  again,  and  put  into  cool  ground  near  our  wine- 
vessels.  This  task  accomplished,  I  mounted  to  revisit  the 
hive,  and  found  every  thing  in  order;  the  bees  going  forth 
in  swarms,  and  returning  loaded  with  wax,  from  which  I 
judged  they  were  forming  fresh  edifices  in  their  new  dwell- 
ing place.  I  had  been  surprised  that  the  numbers  occupy- 
ing the  trunk  of  the  tree  should  find  room  in  the  gourd,  till 
I  perceived  the  clusters  upon  the  branches,  and  I  thence 
concluded  a  young  queen  was  among  each  of  them.  In 
consequence,  I  procured  another  gourd,  into  which  I  shook 
them,  and  placed  it  by  the  former:  thus  I  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  obtaining  at  an  easy  rate  two  fine  hives  of  bees  in 
activity. 

We  soon  after  these  operations  proceeded  to  examine  the 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

inside  of  the  free.  I  sounded  it  with  a  pole  from  the  open- 
ing I  had  made;  and  a  stone  fastened  to  a  string  served  us  to 
sound  the  bottom,  and  thus  to  ascertain  the  height  and  depth 
of  the  cavity.  To  my  great  surprise,  the  pole  penetrated 
without  any  resistance  to  the  branches  on  which  our  dwell- 
ing rested,  and  the  stone  descended  to  the  roots.  The  trunk, 
it  appeared,  had  wholly  lost  its  pith,  and  most  of  its  wood  in- 
ternally. It  seems  that  this  species  of  tree,  like  the  willow 
in  our  climates,  receives  nourishment  through  the  bark;  for 
it  did  not  look  decayed,  and  its  far-extended  branches  were 
luxuriant  and  beautiful  in  the  extreme.  I  determined  to 
begin  our  construction  in  its  capacious  hollow  that  very  day. 
The  undertaking  appeared  at  first  beyond  our  powers;  but 
intelligence,  patience,  time,  and  a  firm  resolution,  vanquish- 
ed all  obstacles.  We  were  not  disposed  to  relax  in  any  of 
these  requisites;  I  was  pleased  to  find  opportunity  to  keep 
my  sons  in  continual  action,  and  their  minds  and  bodies  were 
all  the  better  for  exertion.  They  grew  tall  and  strong, 
and  were  too  much  engaged  to  regret,  in  ignoble  leisure, 
any  of  their  past  enjoyments  in  Europe. 

We  began  to  cut  into  the  side  of  the  tree,  towards  the  sea, 
a  door-way  equal  in  dimensions  to  the  door  of  the  captain's 
cabin,  which  we  had  removed  with  all  its  frame-work  and 
windows.  We  next  cleared  away  from  the  cavijy  all  the 
rotten  wood,  and  rendered  the  interior  even  and  smooth, 
leaving  sufficient  thickness  for  cutting  out  resting  places 
for  the  winding  stairs,  without  injuring  the  bark.  I  then 
fixed  in  the  centre  the  trunk  of  a  tree  about  twenty  feet  in 
length,  and  a  foot  thick,  completely  stripped  of  its  branches, 
in  order  to  carry  my  winding  staircase  round  it:  on  the  out- 
side of  this  trunk,  and  the  inside  of  the  cavity  of  our  own 
tree,  we  formed  grooves,  so  calculated  as   to   correspond 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  $01 

with  the  distances  at  which  the  boards  were  to  be  placed  to 
form  the  stairs.  These  were  continued  till  I  had  got  to  the 
height  of  the  trunk  round  which  they  turned.  I  made  two 
more  apertures  at  suitable  distances,  and  thus  completely 
lighted  the  whole  ascent.  I  also  effected  an  opening  near 
our  room,  that  I  might  more  conveniently  finish  the  upper 
part  of  the  staircase.  A  second  trunk  was  fixed  upon  the 
first,  and  firmly  sustained  with  screws  and  transverse  beams. 
It  was  surrounded,  like  the  other,  with  stairs  cut  slopingly; 
and  thus  we  happily  effected  the  stupendous  undertaking  of 
conducting  it  to  the  level  of  our  bedchamber.  Here  I 
made  another  door  directly  into  it.  To  render  it  more  solid 
and  agreeable,  I  closed  the  spaces  between  the  stairs  with 
plank.  I  then  fastened  two  strong  ropes,  the  one  descend- 
ing the  length  of  the  central  trunk,  the  other  along  the  in- 
side of  our  large  tree,  to  assist  in  case  of  slipping.  I  fixed 
the  sash-windows  taken  from  the  captain's  cabin  in  the  ap- 
ertures we  had  made  to  give  light  to  the  stairs;  and  I  then 
found  I  could  add  nothing  further  to  my  design.  When  the 
whole  was  complete,  it  was  so  pretty,  solid,  and  convenient, 
that  we  were  never  tired  of  going  up  and  coming  down  it. 
Our  success  was  owing  to  the  firm  resolution  adopted  by  all, 
to  persevere  in  patient  industry  and  constant  efforts  to  the 
end;  and  it  employed  us  many  weeks.  I  have  now  to  re- 
late some  occurrences  that  took  place  during  the  construc- 
tion of  our  staircase. 

A  few  days  after  the  commencement  of  our  undertaking, 
our  brave  Flora  whelped  us  six  young  puppies,  all  healthy, 
and  likely  to  live.  The  number  was  so  alarming,  that  I 
was  under  the  necessity  of  drowning  all  but  a  male  and  fe- 
male to  keep  up  the  breed.  A  few  days  later,  the  two  she- 
goats  gave  us  two  kids,  and  our  ewes  five  lambs;  so  that  we 


508  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

now  saw  ourselves  in  possession  of  a  pretty  flock:  but  lest 
the  domestic  animals  should  follow  the  example  of  the  ass, 
and  run  away  from  us,  I  tied  a  bell  to  the  neck  of  each. 
We  had  found  a  sufficient  number  of  bells  in  the  vessel, 
which  had  been  shipped  for  trading  with  the  savages;  it 
being  one  of  the  articles  they  most  value.  We  could  now 
immediately  trace  a  deserter  by  the  sound,  and  bring  it  back 
to  the  fold. 

Next  to  the  winding  stairs,  my  chief  occupation  was  the 
management  of  the  young  buffalo,  whose  wound  in  the  nose 
was  quite  healed,  so  that  I  coufd  lead  it  at  will  with  a 
cord  or  stick  passed  through  the  orifice,  as  the  CarTrarians 
do.  I  preferred  the  stick,  which  answered  the  purpose  of  a 
bit,  and  I  resolved  to  break-in  this  spirited  beast  for  riding 
as  well  as  drawing.  It  was  already  used  to  the  shafts,  and 
very  tractable  in  them;  but  I  had  more  trouble  in  inuring 
him  to  the  rider,  and  to  wear  a  girth,  having  made  one  out 
of  the  old  buffalo's  hide.  I  formed  a  sort  of  saddle  with 
sail-cloth,  and  tacked  it  to  the  girth.  Upon  this  I  fixed  a 
burden,  which  I  increased  progressively.  I  was  indefat- 
igable in  the  training  of  the  animal,  and  soon  brought  it  to 
carry,  patiently,  large  bags  of  potatoes,  salt,  and  other  ar- 
ticles, in  the  place  of  the  ass.  The  monkey  was  his  first 
rider,  who  stuck  so  close  to  the  saddle,  that,  in  spite  of  the 
plunging  and  kicking  of  the  buffalo,  it  was  not  thrown. 
Francis  was  then  tried,  as  the  lightest  of  the  family;  but 
throughout  his  excursion  I  led  the  beast  with  a  halter,  that  it 
might  not  throw  him  off.  Jack  now  showed  some  impatience 
to  mount  the  animal  in  his  turn.  I  next  passed  the  stick 
through  the  buffalo's  nose,  and  tied  strong  packthread  at 
each  end  of  it,  bringing  them  together  over  the  neck  of  the 
animal,  and  put  this  new-fangled  bridle  into  the  hands  of  the 


310  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

young  rider,  directing  him  how  to  use  it.  For  a  time  the 
lad  kept  his  saddle,  notwithstanding  the  unruly  gestures  of 
the  creature;  at  length  a  side  jolt  threw  him  on  the  sand, 
without  his  receiving  much  injury.  Ernest,  Fritz,  and 
lastly  myself,  got  on  successively,  with  more  or  less  effect. 
His  trotting  shook  us  to  the  very  centre,  the  rapidity  of  his 
gallop  turned  us  giddy,  and  our  lessons  in  horsemanship  were 
reiterated  many  days  before  the  animal  was  tamed,  and  could 
be  rode  with  either  safety  or  pleasure.  At  last,  however,  we 
succeeded  without  any  serious  accident ;  and  the  strength  and 
swiftness  of  our  saddled  buffalo  were  prodigious.  It  seem- 
ed to  sport  with  the  heaviest  loads.  My  three  eldest  boys 
mounted  it  together  now  and  then,  and  it  ran  with  them  with 
the  swiftness  of  lightning.  By  continued  attentions  it  at 
length  became  extremely  docile:  it  was  not  in  the  least  apt  to 
start;  and  I  really  felt  satisfaction  in  being  thus  enabled  to 
make  my  sons  expert  riders,  so  that  if  they  should  ever  have 
horses,  they  might  get  on  the  most  restive  and  fiery  without 
fear: — none  could  be  compared  to  our  young  buffalo;  and 
the  ass,  which  I  had  intended  to  employ  in  the  same  way, 
was  far  surpassed  by  this  new  member  of  our  family.  Fritz 
and  Jack,  with  my  instructions,  amused  themselves  in  train- 
ing the  animal  as  horses  are  exercised  in  a  ridinghouse:  and 
by  means  of  the  little  stick  through  the  nose,  they  were  able 
to  do  what  they  pleased  with  him. 

In  the  midst  of  all  this,  Fritz  did  not  neglect  his  eagle:  he 
daily  shot  some  small  birds  which  he  gave  it  to  eat,  placing 
them  sometimes  between  the  buffalo's  horns,  sometimes  on 
the  back  of  one  of  the  hens,  or  of  the  flamingo,  or  on  a  shelf, 
or  at  the  end  of  a  stick,  in  order  to  teach  it  to  pounce  like  a 
falcon  upon  other  birds.  He  taught  it  to  perch  on  his  wrist 
whenever  he  called  or  whistled  to  it;  but  some  time  elapsed 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  311 

before  he  could  trust  it  to  soar  without  securing  its  return  by 
a  long  string,  apprehending  its  bold  and  wild  nature  would 
prompt  it  to  take  a  distant  and  farewell  flight  from  us. 

Our  whole  company,  including  even  the  inert  Ernest,  was 
infected  with  the  passion  of  becoming  instructers.  Ernest 
tried  his  talents  in  this  way  with  his  monkey,  who  seldom 
failed  to  furnish  him  with  work.  It  was  no  poor  specimen 
of  the  ludicrous  to  see  the  lad;  he  whose  movements  were 
habitually  slow  and  studied,  now  constrained  to  skip  and  jump, 
and  play  a  thousand  antics  with  his  pupil  during  training 
hours,  and  throughout,  against  the  grain,  carrying  forward 
the  lesson  the  grotesque  mimic  was  condemned  to  learn,  of 
bearing  small  loads,  climbing  the  cocoa-trees,  and  to  fetch 
and  bring  the  nuts.  He  and  Jack  made  a  little  hamper  of 
rushes,  very  light;  they  put  three  straps  to  it,  two  of  which 
passed  under  the  fore,  and  one  between  the  hind  legs  of  the 
animal,  and  were  then  fastened  to  a  belt  in  front,  to  keep 
the  hamper  steady  on  the  back  of  the  mischievous  urchin. 
This  apparatus  was  at  first  intolerable  to  poor  Knips:  he 
gnashed  his  teeth,  rolled  on  the  ground,  jumping  like  a  mad 
creature,  and  did  every  thing  to  get  rid  of  it:  but  all  in  vain, 
for  education  was  the  standing  order,  and  he  soon  found  he 
must,  submit.  The  hamper  was  left  on  day  and  night;  its 
sole  food  was  what  was  thrown  into  it;  and  in  a  short  time 
pug  was  so  much  accustomed  to  the  burden,  that  he  began 
to  spit  and  growl  whenever  we  attempted  to  take  it  off,  and 
every  "thing  given  to  the  creature  to  hold  was  instantly 
thrown  into  it.  Knips  became  at  length  a  useful  member 
of  our  society;  but  he  would  only  obey  Ernest,  whom  he  at 
once  loved  and  feared,  thus  affording  a  proof  of  at  least  one 
of  the  great  ends  of  all  instruction. 

These  different  occupations  filled  up  several  hours  of  the 


$12  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

day ;  when,  after  working  at  our  stairs,  we  assembled  in  the 
evening  round  our  best  of  friends,  the  good  mother,  to  rest 
ourselves:  and  forming  a  little  circle,  every  individual  of 
which  was  affectionate  and  cheerful,  it  was  her  turn  to  give 
us  some  agreeable  and  less  fatiguing  occupation  in  the  do- 
mestic concerns  of  Falcon's  Stream:  such  as  improving  our 
candle  manufactory,  by  blending  the  berry  and  the  bees' 
wax,  and  employing  the  reed-rnoulds  invented  by  Jack :  but 
having  found  some  difficulty  in  taking  out  the  candles  when 
cold,  I  adopted  the  plan  of  dividing  the  moulds,  cleaning 
the  inside,  and  rubbing  it  over  with  a  little  butter,  to  prevent 
the  wax  from  adhering  to  it;  then  to  rejoin  both  halves  with 
a  band  that  could  be  loosened  at  pleasure,  to  facilitate  the 
extraction  of  the  tapers.  The  wicks  gave  us  most  trouble 
as  we  had  no  cotton.  We  tried  with  moderate  success  the 
fibrous  threads  of  the  karrata,  and  those  of  the  algava  or 
flame-wood;  but  each  had  the  inconvenience  of  becoming: 
a  sort  of  coal  or  cinder.  The  production  which  gave  us 
the  most  satisfaction  was  the  pith  of  a  species  of  elder;  but 
it  did  not,  however,  lessen  our  desire  to  discover  the  only 
appropriate  ingredient,  the  cotton-tree. 

We  now  began  to  think  of  manufacturing  our  impenetra- 
ble boots  without  seams,  of  the  caoutchouc  or  elastic  gum. 
I  began  with  a  pair  for  myself;  and  I  encouraged  my  child- 
ren to  afford  a  specimen  of  their  industry,  by  trying  to  form 
some  flasks  and  cups  that  could  not  break.  They  began  by 
making  some  clay  moulds,  which  they  covered  with  layers 
of  gum,  agreeably  to  the  instructions  I  had  given  them.  In 
the  meanwhile  I  filled  a  pair  of  stockings  with  sand,  and 
covered  them  with  a  layer  of  clay,  which  I  first  dried  in  the 
shade,  and  afterwards  in  the  sun.  I  then  took  a  sole  of  buf- 
falo-leather, well  beaten,  and  studded  round  with  tacks,  which 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  313 

served  me  to  fix  it  under  the  foot  of  the  stocking;  after  this 
I  poured  the  liquid  gum  into  all  the  interstices,  which  on 
drying  produced  a  close  adhesion  between  the  leather  and 
stocking  sole.  I  next  proceeded  to  smear  the  whole  with 
a  coat  of  resin  of  a  tolerable  thickness;  and  as  soon  as  thi3 
layer  was  dried  on,  I  put  on  another,  and  so  on  till  I  had 
applied  a  sufficiency  with  my  brush.  After  this  I  emptied 
die  sand,  drew  out  the  stocking,  removed  the  hardened  clay, 
shook  off  the  dust,  and  thus  obtained  a  pair  of  seamless 
boots,  as  finished  as  if  made  by  the  best  English  workman; 
being  pliant,  warm,  soft,  smooth,  and  completely  water- 
proof. I  hung  them  up  directly,  that  they  might  dry  without 
shrinking.  They  fitted  uncommonly  well;  and  my  four  lads 
were  so  highly  pleased  with  their  appearance,  that  they 
skipped  about  with  joy,  as  they  asked  me  to  make  each  of 
them  a  pair.  I  i chained  from  any  promise,  because  I 
wished  to  ascertain  their  strength  previously,  and  to  com- 
pare them  with  boots  made  out  of  mere  buffalo-leather.  Of 
these  I  at  once  began  a  pair  for  Fritz,  with  a  piece  of  the 
slaughtered  buffalo's  skin.  They  gave  far  more  trouble  than 
those  manufactured  with  the  caoutchouc,  which  I  used  to 
cover  the  seams  and  render  them  less  pervious  to  water. 
The  work  turned  out  very  imperfect,  and  so  inferior  to  my 
incomparable  boots,  that  Fritz  wore  them  reluctantly;  and 
the  more  so,  as  his  brother  shouted  with  laughter  at  the  diffi- 
culty he  had  to  run  in  them. 

We  had  also  been  engaged  in  the  construction  of  our 
fountain,  which  afforded  a  perpetual  source  of  pleasure  to 
my  wife,  and  indeed  to  all  of  us.  In  the  upper  part  of  the 
stream  we  built  with  stakes  and  stones  a  kind  of  dam,  that 

CC 


514  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

raised  the  water  sufnciently^to  convey  it  into  the  palm-tree 
troughs;  and  afterwards,  by  means  of  a  gentle  slope,  to 
glide  on  contiguous  to  our  habitation,  where  it  fell  into  the 
tortoise-shell  basin,  which  we  had  elevated  on  stones  to  a 
certain  height  for  our  convenience;  and  it  was  so  contrived, 
that  the  redundant  water  passed  off  through  a  cane  pipe 
fitted  to  it.  I  placed  two  sticks  athwart  each  other  for  the 
gourds,  that  served  as  pails,  to  rest  on;  and  we  thus  produc- 
ed, close  to  our  abode,  an  agreeable  fountain,  delighting 
with  its  rill,  and  supplying  us  with  a  pure  crystal  fluid,  such 
as  we  frequently  could  not  get  when  we  drew  our  water 
from  the  bed  of  the  river,  which  was  often  encumbered  with 
the  leaves  and  earth  fallen  into  it,  or  rendered  turbid  by  our 
waterfowls.  The  only  inconvenience  was,  that  the  water 
flowing  in  this  open  state  through  the  narrow  channels  in  a 
slender  stream,  was  heated,  and  not  refreshing  when  it 
reached  us.  I  resolved  to  obviate  this  inconvenience  at  my 
future  leisure,  by  employing,  instead  of  the  uncovered 
conduits,  large  bamboo  canes  fixed  deep  enough  in  the 
ground  to  keep  the  water  cool.  In  waiting  the  execution 
of  this  design,  we  felt  pleasure  in  the  new  acquisition;  and 
Fritz,  who  had  suggested  the  notion,  received  his  tribute  of 
praise  from  all. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  315 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

The    Wild  Ass; —  Difficulty  in  breaking  it; —  The  Heath' 

Fowl's  Mst 

We  were  scarcely  up  one  morning,  and  had  got  to  work 
in  putting  the  last  hand  to  our  winding  staircase,  when  we 
heard  at  a  distance  two  strange  kind  of  voices,  that  resem- 
bled the  howlings  of  wild  beasts,  mixed  with  hissings  and 
sounds  of  some  creature  at  its  last  gasp;  and  I  was  not  with- 
out uneasiness:  our  dogs  too  pricked  up  their  ears,  and 
seemed  to  whet  their  teeth  for  a  sanguinary  combat  with  a 
dangerous  enemy. 

From  their  looks  we  judged  it  prudent  to  put  ourselves  in 
a  state  of  defence;  we  loaded  cur  guns  and  pistols,  placed 
them  together  within  our  castle  in  the  tree,  and  prepared  to 
repel  vigorously  any  hostile  attack  from  that  quarter.  The 
howlings  having  ceased  an  instant,  I  descended  from  our 
citadel,  well  armed,  and  put  on  our  two  faithful  guardians 
their  spiked  collars  and  side-guards:  I  assembled  our  cattle 
about  the  tree  to  have  them  in  sight,  and  I  reascended  to 
look  around  for  the  enemy's  approach.  Jack  wished  they 
might  be  lions — "  I  should  like,"  said  he,  "  to  have  a  near 
view  of  the  king  of  beasts,  and  should  not  be  in  the  least 
afraid  of  him. " 

At  this  instant  the  howlings  were  renewed,  and  almost 
close  to  us.  Fritz  got  as  near  the  spot  as  he  could,  listened 
attentively  and  with  eager  looks,  then  threw  down  his  gun, 
and  burst  into  a  loud  laughter,  exclaiming,  "  Father,  it  is 
our  ass!  the  deserter  comes  back  to  us,  chanting  the  hymn 


316  THE   SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

of  return:  listen!  do  you  not  hear  his  melodious  brayings  in 
all  the  varieties  of  the  gamut?"  I  listened,  and  afresh  roar, 
in  sounds  unquestionable,  raised  loud  peals  of  laughter 
amongst  us;  and  then  followed  the  usual  train  of  jests  and 
mutual  banter  at  the  alarm  we  had  one  and  all  betrayed. 
Shortly  after,  we  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  among  the 
trees  our  old  friend  Grizzle,  moving  towards  us  leisurely, 
and  stopping  now  and  then  to  browse;  but  to  our  great  joy, 
he  was  accompanied  by  one  of  his  own  species,  of  very  su- 
perior beauty;  and  when  it  was  nearer,  I  knew  it  to  be  a 
fine  onagra,  or  wild  ass,  which  I  conceived  a  strong  desire 
to  possess,  though  at  the  same  time  aware  of  the  extreme 
difficulty  there  would  be  in  taming  and  rendering  him  sub- 
ject to  the  use  of  man.  Some  writers,  who  have  described 
it  under  the  name  of  the  OEigitai,  (or  long-eared  horse), 
given  it  by  the  Tartars,  affirm  that  the  taming  it  has  been 
ever  found  impracticable;  but  my  mind  furnished  an  idea  on 
the  subject,  which  I  was  resolved  to  act  on  if  I  got  posses- 
sion of  the  handsome  creature.  Without  delay  I  descend- 
ed the  ladder  with  Fritz,  desiring  his  brothers  to  keep  still; 
and  I  consulted  my  privy-counsellor  on  the  means  of  sur- 
prising and  taking  the  stranger  captive. 

I  got  ready,  as  soon  as  possible,  a  long  cord  with  a  run- 
ning knot,  one  end  of  which  I  tied  fast  to  the  root  of  a  tree; 
the  noose  was  kept  open  with  a  little  stick  slightly  fixed  in 
the  opening,  so  as  to  fall  of  itself  on  the  cord  being  thrown 
round  the  neck  of  the  animal,  whose  efforts  to  escape  would 
draw  the  knot  closer.  I  also  prepared  a  piece  of  bamboo 
about  two  feet  long,  which  I  split  at  the  bottom,  and  tied 
fast  at  top,  to  serve  as  nippers.  Fritz  attentively  examined 
my  contrivance,  without  seeing  the  use  of  it.  Prompted  by 
the  impatience  of  youth,  he  took  the  ball-sling,  and  proposed 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  317 

aiming  at  the  wild  ass  with  it,  which  he  said  was  the  short- 
est way  of  proceeding.  I  declined  adopting  this  Patagonian 
method,  fearing  the  attempt  might  fail,  and  the  beautiful 
creature  avail  itself  of  its  natural  velocity  to  evade  us  be- 
yond recovery:  I  therefore  told  him  my  project  of  catching 
it  in  the  noose,  which  I  gave  him  to  manage,  as  being 
nimbler  and  more  expert  than  myself.  The  two  asses  drew 
nearer  and  nearer  to  us.  Fritz  holding  in  his  hand  the 
open  noose,  moved  softly  on  from  behind  the  tree  where  we 
were  concealed,  and  advanced  as  far  as  the  length  of  the 
rope  allowed  him:  the  onagra  started  on  perceiving  a  human 
figure;  it  sprang  some  paces  backward,  then  stopped  as  if 
to  examine  the  unknown  form;  but  as  Fritz  now  remained 
quite  still,  the  animal  resumed  its  composure,  and  continued 
to  browse.  Soon  after  he  approached  the  old  ass,  hoping 
that  the  confidence  that  would  be  shown  by  it,  would  raise 
a  similar  feeling  in  the  stranger:  he  held  out  a  handful  of 
oats  mixed  with  salt;  our  ass  instantly  ran  up  to  take  its 
favourite  food,  and  greedily  devoured  it;  this  was  quickly 
perceived  by  the  other.  It  drew  near,  raised  its  head, 
breathed  strongly,  and  came  up  so  close,  that  Fritz,  seizing 
the  opportunity,  succeeded  in  throwing  the  rope  round  its 
neck;  but  the  motion  and  stroke  so  affrighted  the  beast,  that 
it  instantly  sprang  off.  It  was  soon  checked  by  the  cord, 
which,  in  compressing  the  neck,  almost  stopped  its  breath: 
it  could  go  no  farther,  and,  after  many  exhausting  efforts,  it 
sunk  panting  for  breath  upon  the  ground.  I  hastened  to 
loosen  the  cord,  and  prevent  its  being  strangled.  I  then 
quickly  threw  our  ass's  halter  over  its  head;  I  fixed  the 
nose  in  my  split  cane,  which  I  secured  at  the  bottom  with 
packthread.  Thus  I  succeeded  in  subduing  the  first  alarm 
of  this  wild  animal,  as  farriers  shoe  a  horse  for  the  first  time. 


318  THE   SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

I  wholly  removed  the  noose  that  seemed  to  bring  the  crea- 
ture into  a  dangerous  situation;  I  fastened  the  halter  with 
two  long  ropes  to  two  roots  near  us,  on  the  right  and  left, 
and  let  the  animal  recover  itself,  noticing  its  actions,  and 
devising  the  best  way  to  tame  it  in  the  completest  manner. 

The  rest  of  my  family  had  by  this  time  come  down  from 
the  tree,  and  beheld  the  fine  creature  with  admiration,  its 
graceful  shape,  and  well-turned  limbs,  which  placed  it  so 
much  above  the  ass,  and  nearly  raised  it  to  the  noble 
structure  of  the  horse.  In  a  few  moments  the  onagra  got 
up  again,  struck  furiously  with  its  foot,  and  seemed  resolv- 
ed to  free  itself  from  all  bonds:  but  the  pain  of  its  nose, 
which  was  grasped  and  violently  squeezed  in  the  bamboo, 
forced  it  to  lie  down  again.  Fritz  and  I  now  gently  undid 
the  cords,  and  half  led,  half  dragged  it,  between  two  roots 
closely  connected,  to  which  we  fastened  it  afresh,  so  as  to 
give  the  least  scope  for  motion,  and  thus  render  its  escape 
impracticable,  whilst  it  enabled  us  to  approach  securely, 
and  examine  the  valuable  capture  we  had  made.  We  also 
guarded  against  master  Grizzle  playing  truant  again,  and 
tied  him  fast  with  a  new  halter,  confining  its  fore-legs  with 
a  rope.  I  then  fastened  it  and  the  wild  ass  side  by  side, 
and  put  before  both  plenty  of  good  provender  to  solace 
their  impatience  of  captivity. 

We  had  now  the  additional  occupation  of  training  the 
onagra  for  our  service  or  our  pleasure,  as  might  turn  out 
to  be  most  practicable:  my  boys  exulted  in  the  idea  of  riding 
it,  and  we  repeatedly  congratulated  each  other  on  the  good 
fortune  which  had  thus  resulted  from  the  flight  of  our  ass. 
Yet  I  did  not  coneeal  that  we  should  have  many  difficulties 
to  encounter  in  taming  it,  though  it  seemed  very  young, 
and  not  even  to  have  reached  its  full  growth.     But  I  was 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  319 

inclined  to  think  proper  means  had  not  been  hitherto  adopt- 
ed, and  that  the  hunters,  almost  as  savage  as  the  animals 
themselves,  had  not  employed  sufficient  art  and  patience, 
being  probably  unconscious  of  the  advantages  of  either.  I 
therefore  determined  to  resort  to  all  possible  measures.  I 
let  the  nippers  remain  on  its  nose,  which  appeared  to  dis- 
tress him  greatly,  though  we  could  plainly  perceive  their 
good  effect  in  subduing  the  creature;  for  without  them  no 
one  could  have  ventured  to  approach  him.  I  took  them  off, 
however,  at  times,  when  I  gave  it  food,  to  render  eating 
easier,  and  I  began,  as  with  the  buffalo,  by  placing  a  bun- 
dle of  sail-cloth  on  its  back,  to  inure  it  to  carry.  When  ac- 
customed to  the  load,  I  strove  to  render  the  beast  by  degrees 
still  more  docile,  by  hunger  and  thirst;  and  I  observed  with 
pleasure,  that  when  it  had  fasted  a  little  and  I  supplied  it 
with  food,  its  look  and  actions  were  less  wild.  I  also  com- 
pelled the  animal  to  keep  erect  on  its  four  legs,  by  drawing 
the  cords  closer  that  fastened  it  to  the  roots,  in  order  to 
subdue  gradually  by  fatigue  its  natural  ferocity.  The  chil- 
dren came  in  turns  to  play  jvith  it,  and  scratch  its  ears 
gently,  which  were  remarkably  tender;  and  it  was  on  these 
I  resolved  to  make  my  last  trial,  if  all  other  endeavours  fail- 
ed. For  a  long  time  we  despaired  of  success;  the  onagra 
made  furious  starts  and  leaps  when  any  of  us  went  near  it, 
kicked  with  its  hind  feet,  and  even  attempted  to  bite  those 
who  touched  it.  This  obliged  me  to  have  recourse  to  a 
muzzle,  which  I  managed  with  rushes,  and  put  on  when  it 
was  not  feeding.  To  avoid  being  struck  by  its  hind  feet,  I 
partially  confined  them,  by  fastening  them  to  the  forefeet 
with  cords,  which,  however,  I  left  moderately  loose,  that 
we  might  not  encroach  too  much  upon  the  motion  necessa- 
ry for  its  health.     It  was  at  length  familiarized  to  this  dis- 


320  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

cipline,  and  was  no  longer  in  a  rage  when  we  approached, 
but  grew  less  impatient  daily,  and  bore  to  be  handled  and 
stroked. 

At  last  we  ventured  to  free  it  by  degrees  from  its  res- 
traints, and  to  ride  it  as  we  had  done  with  the  buffalo,  still 
keeping  the  fore-feet  tied:  but  notwithstanding  this  precau- 
tion and  every  preceding  means,  it  proved  as  fierce  and  un- 
ruly as  ever  for  the  moment.  The  monkey,  who  was  first 
put  on  its  back,  held  on  pretty  well  by  clinging  to  its  mane, 
from  which  it  was  suspended  as  often  as  the  onagra  furious- 
ly reared  and  plunged;  it  was  therefore  for  the  present  im- 
practicable for  either  of  my  sons  to  get  upon  it.  The  per- 
verse beast  baffled  all  our  efforts,  and  the  perilous  task  of 
breaking  it  was  still  to  be  persevered  in  with  terror  and  ap- 
prehension. In  the  stable  it  seemed  tolerably  quiet  and 
gentle;  but  the  moment  it  was  in  any  degree  unshackled,  it 
became  wholly  ferocious  and  unmanageable. 

I  was  at  length  reduced  to  my  last  expedient,  but  not 
without  much  regret,  as  I  resolved,  if  it  did  not  answer,  to 
restore  the  animal  to  full  liber^v.  I  tried  to  mount  the  ona- 
gra, and  just  as  in  the  act  of  rearing  up  violently  to  prevent 
me,  I  seized  with  my  teeth  one  of  the  long  ears  of  the  en- 
raged creature,  and  bit  it  till  it  bled;  instantly  it  stood  al- 
most erect  on  its  hind  feet,  motionless,  and  as  stiff  as  a 
stake;  it  soon  lowered  itself  by  degrees,  while  I  still  held 
its  ear  between  my  teeth.  Fritz  seized  the  moment,  and 
sprang  on  its  back;  Jack,  with  the  help  of  his  mother,  did 
the  same,  holding  by  his  brother,  who  on  his  part  clung  to 
the  girth.  When  both  assured  me  they  were  firmly  seated, 
I  let  go  the  ear:  the  onagra  made  a  few  springs  less  violent 
than  the  former,  and  checked  by  the  cords  on  its  feet,  it 
gradually  submitted,  began  to  trot  up  and  down  more  quiet- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  321 

ly,  and  ultimately  grew  so  tractable,  that  riding  it  became 
one  of  our  chief  pleasures.  My  lads  were  soon  expert 
horsemen;  and  their  horse,  though  rather  long-eared,  was 
very  handsome  and  well  broken  in.  Thus  patience  on  our 
parts  conquered  a  serious  difficulty,  and  gained  for  us  a 
proud  advantage. 

I  now  explained  to  my  companions  that  I  learned  this  ex- 
traordinary mode  of  taming  from  a  horsebreaker  I  met  with 
by  chance.  He  had  lived  long  in  America,  and  carried  on 
the  skin-trade  with  the  savages,  to  whom  he  took,  in  ex- 
change, various  European  goods.  He  employed  in  these 
journeys  half-tamed  horses  of  the  southern  provinces  of  that 
country,  which  are  caught  in  snares  or  with  nooses.  They 
are  at  first  unruly,  and  resist  burdens;  but  as  soon  as  the 
hunter  bites  one  of  their  ears,  they  become  mild  and  sub- 
missive, and  at  last  so  docile  that  any  thing  may  be  done 
with  them.  The  journey  is  continued  through  forests  and 
over  heaths  to  the  dwellings  of  the  savages;  skins  are  given 
in  barter  for  the  goods  brought  them,  with  which  the  horses 
are  reloaded.  They  set  out  again  on  their  return,  and  are 
directed  by  the  compass  and  stars  to  the  European  settle- 
ments, where  they  profitably  dispose  of  their  skins  and 
horses. 

In  a  few  weeks  the  onagra  was  so  effectual7 v  tamed,  that 
we  all  could  mount  it  without  fear:  I  still,  how  *  ver,  kept  his 
two  forelegs  confined  together  with  the  cord,  to  moderate 
the  extreme  swiftness  of  its  running.  In  the  room  of  a  bit, 
I  contrived  a  curb,  and  with  this  and  a  good  bite  applied,  as 
wanted,  to  the  ear,  it  went  to  right  or  left  at  the  will  of  the 
rider.  Now  and  then  I  mounted  it  myself,  and  not  without 
an  emotion  of  pride  at  my  success  in  subduing  an  animal  that 
had  been  considered  by  travellers  and  naturalists  as  absolute- 


322  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

ly  beyond  the  power  of  man  to  tame.  But  how  superior 
was  my  gratification,  on  seeing  Fritz  spring  at  any  time  on 
the  creature's  back,  drive  along  our  avenue  like  lightning, 
and  do  what  he  pleased  with  it,  in  depicting  to  my  fond  imag- 
ination, that  even  on  a  desert  unknown  island,  I  could  qual- 
ify my  dear  children  to  reenter  society,  andt  become  in  such 
respects  its  ornament!  In  beholding  their  physical  strength 
and  native  graces  unfold  themselves,  and  these  keeping  pace 
with  the  improvement  of  their  intelligence  and  their  judg- 
ment; and  in  anticipating  that,  buried  as  they  were  in  a 
distant  retreat,  far  from  the  tumult  of  the  world,  and  all  that 
excites  the  passions,  their  sentiments  would  be  formed  in  ex- 
act conformity  to  the  paternal  feelings  of  my  heart!  I  had 
not  lost  the  hope  that  we  should  one  day  return  to  Europe  in 
some  vessel  chance  might  throw  on  our  coast,  or  even  with 
the  aid  of  our  pinnace:  but  I  felt,  at  the  same  time,  and  my 
wife  still  more,  that  we  should  not  leave  the  island  without  a 
lively  regret,  and  I  determined  to  pursue  my  arrangements  as 
if  we  were  to  close  existence  on  a  spot  where  all  around  us 
prospered. 

During  the  training  of  our  horse,  which  we  named  Light- 
foot,  a  triple  brood  of  our  hens  had  given  us  a  crowd  of  little 
feathered  beings;  forty  of  these  at  least  were  chirping  and 
hopping  about  us,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  my  wife,  whose 
zealous  care  of  them  sometimes  made  me  smile.  Some  of 
these  we  kept  near  us,  while  others  were  sent  in  small  colo- 
nies to  feed  and  breed  in  the  desert,  where  we  could  find 
thern  as  they  were  wanted  for  our  use. 

This  increase  of. our  poultry  reminded  us  of  an  under- 
taking we  had  long  thought  of,  and  was  not  in  prudence  to 
be  deferred  any  longer;  this  was  the  building,  between  the 
roots  of  our  great  tree,  covered  sheds  for  all  our  bipeds  and 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  323 

quadrupeds.  The  rainy  season,  which  is  the  winter  of  these 
countries,  was  drawing  near,  and  to  avoid  losing  most  of  our 
stock,  it  was-  requisite  to  shelter  it. 

We  began  by  forming  a  kind  of  roof  above  the  arched  roots 
of  our  tree,  and  employed  bamboo  canes  for  the  purpose:  the 
longest  and  strongest  supported  the  roofing  in  the  place  of 
columns,  the  smaller  more  closely  united  and  composed  the 
roof  itself.  I  filled  up  the  interstices  with  moss  and  clay,  and 
I  spread  over  the  whole  a  thick  coat  of  tar.  By  these  means 
I  formed  a  compact  and  solid  covering,  capable  of  bearing 
pressure.  I  then  made  a  railing  round  it,  which  gave  the 
appearance  of  a  pretty  balcony,  under  which,  between  the 
roots,  were  various  stalls  sheltered  from  rain  and  sun,  that 
could  be  easily  shut  and  separated  from  each  other  by  means 
of  planks  nailed  upon  the  roots:  part  of  them  were  calculated 
to  serve  as  a  stable  and  yard,  part  as  an  eating-room,  a  store- 
room, 8tc,  and  as  a  hayloft  to  keep  our  hay  and  provisions 
dry  in.  This  work  was  soon  completed;  but  afterwards 
it  was  necessary  to  fill  these  places  with  stores  of  every  kind 
for  our  supply  throughout  the  wet  season.  In  this  task  we 
engaged  diligently,  and  went  daily  here  and  there  with  our 
cart  to  collect  every  thing  useful,  and  that  might  give  us  em- 
ployment when  the  weather  prevented  our  going  far. 

One  evening,  on  our  return  from  digging  up  potatoes,  as 
our  cart  loaded  with  bags,  drawn  by  the  buffalo,  ass  and  cow, 
was  gently  rolling  along,  seeing  still  a  vacant  place  in  the 
vehicle,  I  advised  my  wife  to  go  home  with  the  two  youngest 
boys,  whilst  I  went  round  by  the  wood  of  oaks  with  Ernest 
and  Fritz,  to  gather  as  many  sweet  acorns  as  we  could  find 
room  for.  We  had  still  some  empty  sacks.  Ernest  was  ac- 
companied by  his  monkey,  who  seldom  left  him;  and  Fritz, 
horseman  like,  was  on  his  dear  onagra,  which  he  had  appro- 


324  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

priated  to  himself,  inasmuch  as  he  had  helped  to  take 
and  tame  it,  and  indeed  because  he  knew  how  to  manage  it 
better  than  his  brothers.  JErnest  was  too  lazy,  and  prefer- 
red walking  at  ease  with  the  monkey  on  his  shoulder,  and 
the  more  so,  because  it  spared  him  the  trouble  of  gathering 
fruit. 

When  we  reached  the  oaks,  Lightfoot  was  tied  to  a  bush, 
and  we  set  actively  to  work  to  gather  the  acorns  that  had 
dropped  from  the  trees.  While  all  were  busily  employed, 
the  monkey  quitted  its  master's  shoulder  and  skipped  unper- 
ceived  into  an  adjoining  bush.  It  had  been  there  some  time 
when  we  heard  on  that  side  the  loud  cries  of  birds  and  flap- 
ping of  wings,  and  this  assured  us  a  sharp  conflict  was  going 
on  between  master  Knips  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  bushes. 
I  despatched  Ernest  to  reconnoitre.  He  went  stoutly  to- 
wards the  place,  and  in  an  instant  we  heard  him  exclaim, 
"Come  quickly,  father!  A  fine  heath-fowl's  nest  full  of  eggs; 
Mr.  Knips,  as  usual,  wished  to  make  a  meal  of  them;  the 
hen  and  he  are  fighting  for  it:  come  quick,  Fritz,  and  take 
her;   I  am  holding  greedy-chops  as  well  as  I  can." 

Fritz  ran  up  directly,  and  in  a  few  moments  brought  out 
alive  the  male  and  female  heath-fowl,  both  very  beautiful; 
the  cock  finely  collared,  similar  to  one  he  had  killed  on  a 
former  occasion.  I  was  rejoiced  at  this  discovery,  and 
helped  my  son  to  prevent  their  escape,  by  tying  their  wings 
and  feet,  and  holding  them  while  he  returned  to  the  bush 
for  the  eggs.  And  now  Ernest  came  forward  driving  the 
monkey  before  him,  and  carrying  his  hat  with  the  utmost 
care:  he  had  stuck  his  girdle  full  of  narrow  sharp-pointed 
leaves,  in  shape  like  a  knife-blade,  which  reminded  me  of 
the  production  named  sword-grass;  but  I  did  not  pay  much 
attention,  as  I  was  too  busily  engaged  in  our  egg-hunt,  and 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  325 

Considered  "his  decoration  as  childishness.  On  coming  up 
to  me  he  uncovered  hid  hat,  and  gave  it  me  in  a  transport 
of  joy,  crying  out,  "Here,  father,  are  some  heath-fowl's 
eggs.  I  found  them  in  a  nest  so  well  concealed  under  these 
long  leaves,  that  I  should  not  have  observed  them  had  not 
the  hen,  in  defending  herself  against  the  monkey,  scattered 
them  about.  I  am  going  to  take  them  home,  they  will 
please  my  mother;  and  these  leaves  will  amuse  Francis,  for 
they  are  like  swords,  and  he  will  like  them  for  a  plaything." 
I  applauded  Ernest's  kind  thought,  and  I  encouraged  him 
and  Fritz  to  be  thus  ever  considerate  for  the  absent.  The 
kindnesses  conferred  on  those  who  are  separated  from  us  have 
in  theme! ves  more  merit,  and  are  more  valued,  than  those 
which  are  personally  received.  It  was  now  time  to  think 
of  moving  homeward:  my  two  sons  filled  the  bags  with 
acorns,  and  put  them  on  Lightfoot.  Fritz  mounted,  Ernest 
carried  the  eggs,  I  took  charge  of  the  hen,  and  we  proceed- 
ed to  Falcon's  Stream  followed  by  our  train-wagon.  Our 
good  cattle  were  in  such  complete  subjection,  that  it  was 
only  necessary  to  speak  to  them.  I  remarked  Ernest  often 
applying  his  ear  to  the  hat  which  held  the  eggs,  as  if  he 
thought  the  little  ones  were  near  coming  forth;  I  listened 
also  and  observed  some  shells  already  broken  and  the  young 
protruding:  we  were  overjoyed  at  our  good  luck,  and  Fritz 
could  not  refrain  from  trotting  on  briskly  to  bear  the  tidings 
to  his  mother.  When  arrived,  our  first  care  was  to  examine 
the  eggs:  the  female  bird  was  too  frightened  and  wild  to  sit 
upon  them:  fortunately  we  had  a  hen  that  was  hatching;  her 
eggs  were  immediately  removed,  and  the  new  ones  put  in 
their  place:  the  female  heath-fowl  was  put  into  the  parrot's 
cage,  and  hung  up  in  the  room,  to  accustom  it  to  our  soci- 
ety.    In  less  than  three  days  all  the  chickens  were  hatched; 


326  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

they  kept  close  to  their  foster-mother,  and  ate  greedily  a 
mixture  of  sweet  acorns  bruised  in  milk,  such  as  we  gave 
our  tame  poultry:  as  they  grew  up  I  plucked  out  the  large 
feathers  of  their  wings,  lest  they  should  naturally  take  flight: 
but  they  and  their  real  parent  gradually  became  so  domes- 
ticated, that  they  daily  accompanied  our  feathered  stock  in 
search  of  food,  and  regularly  came  back  at  night  to  the  roost 
I  had  prepared  for  them,  and  in  which  this  little  new  colony 
of  feathered  beings  seemed  to  delight. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

Flax; — and  the  Rainy  Season. 

Francis  for  a  short  time  was  highly  amused  with  his 
sword-leaves, and  then,  like  all  children,  who  are  soon  tired 
of  their  toys,  he  grew  weary  of  them,  and  they  were  thrown 
aside.  Fritz  picked  up  some  of  them  that  were  quite  soft 
and  withered;  holding  up  one  which  was  pliable  as  a  riband 
in  his  hand:  "Francis,"  said  he,  "you  can  make  whips  of 
your  sword-grass,  and  they  will  be  of  use  in  driving  your 
goats  and  sheep."  It  had  been  lately  decided  that  it  should 
be  the  business  of  Francis  to  lead  these  to  pasture.  Fritz 
accordingly  sat  down  to  help  him  divide  the  leaves,  and 
afterwards  plat  them  into  whip-cords.  As  they  were  work- 
ing, I  saw  with  pleasure  the  flexibility  and  strength  of  the 
bands;  I  examined  them  more  closely,  and  found  they  were 
composed  of  long  fibres  or  filaments;   and  this  discovery  led 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  327 

me  to  surmise  that  this  supposed  sword-grass  might  be  a 
very  different  thing,  and  not  improbably  the  flax-plant,  of 
New  Zealand,  called  by  naturalists  Chlomidia,  and  by  others 
Phormion.  This  was  a  valuable  discovery  in  our  situation: 
1  knew  how  much  my  wife  wished  for  the  production,  and 
that  it  was  the  article  she  felt  most  the  want  of:  I  therefore 
hastened  to  communicate  the  intelligence  to  her,  and  she  ex- 
pressed the  liveliest  joy:  "This,"  said  she,  "is  the  most 
useful  thing  you  have  found;  lose  not  a  moment  in  search- 
ing for  more  of  these  leaves,  and  bring  me  the  most  you  can 
of  them;  I  will  make  you  stockings,  shirts,  clothes,  thread, 

ropes In  short,  give  me  flax,  looms,  and  frames,  and  I  shall 

be  at  no  loss  in  the  employment  of  it."  I  could  not  help  smil- 
ing at  the  scope  she  gave  to  her  imagination,  on  the  bare 
mention  of  flax,  though  so  much  was  to  be  done  between  the 
gathering  the  leaves,  and  having  the  cloth  she  was  already 
sewing  in  idea.  Fritz  whispered  a  word  in  Jack's  ear;  both 
went  to  the  stable,  and  without  asking  my  leave,  one  mount- 
ed Lightfoot,  the  other  the  buffalo,  and  galloped  off  towards 
the  wood  so  fast  that  I  had  no  time  to  call  them  back:  they 
were  already  out  of  sight:  their  eagerness  to  oblige  their 
mother  in  this  instance  pleaded  their  forgiveness,  and  I 
suffered  them  to  go  on  without  following  them,  purposing  to 
proceed  and  bring  them  back  if  they  did  not  soon  return. 
In  waiting  for  them  I  conversed  with  my  wife,  who  pointed 
out  to  me,  with  all  the  animation  and  spirit  of  useful  enter- 
prise so  natural  to  her  character,  the  various  machinery  I 
must  contrive  for  spinning  and  weaving  her  flax  for  the 
manufactory  of  cloths,  with  which  she  said  she  should  be 
able  to  eauip  us  from  head  to  foot;  in  speaking  of  which, 
her  eyes  sparkled  with  doing  good,  the  love  of  the  purest 
kind  of  joy,  and  I  promised  her  all  she  desired  of  me. 


328  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  our  deserters  came  back:  like 
true  hussars,  they  had  foraged  the  woods,  and  heavily 
loaded  their  cattle  with  the  precious  plant,  which  they  threw 
at  their  mother's  feet  with  joyful  shouts.  It  was  next  pro- 
posed that  all  should  assist  her  in  preparations  for  the  work 
she  was  to  engage  in,  and  previously  in  steeping  the  flax. 

Fritz. — How  is  flax  prepared,  father,  and  what  is  meant 
by  steeping  it? 

Father. — Steeping  flax,  or  hemp,  is  exposing  it  in  the 
open  air,  by  spreading  it  on  the  ground  to  receive  the  rain, 
the  wind,  and  the  dew,  in  order  in  a  certain  degree  to  liquify 
the  plant;  by  this  means  the  ligneous  parts  of  the  flax  are 
separated  with  more  ease  from  the  fibrous;  a  kind  of  vege- 
table glue  that  binds  them  is  dissolved,  and  it  can  then  be 
perfectly  cleaned  with  great  ease,  and  the  parts  selected 
which  are  fit  for  spinning. 

Fritz. — But  may  not  the  natural  texture  of  this  part  be 
destroyed  by  exposing  it  so  long  to  wet? 

Father. — That  certainly  may  happen  when  the  process  is 
managed  injudiciously,  and  the  flax  not  duly  turned;  the 
risk,  however,  is  not  great,  the  fibrous  part  has  a  peculiar 
tenacity,  which  enables  it  to  resist  longer  the  action  of  hu- 
midity: flax  may  be  even  steeped  altogether  in  water  without 
injury.  Many  think  this  the  best  and  quickest  method,  and 
I  am  of  their  opinion. 

My  wife  coincided  with  me,  especially  in  the  sultry  cli- 
mate we  inhabited:  she  therefore  proposed  to  soak  the  flax 
in  Flamingo  Marsh,  and  to  begin  by  making  up  the  leaves 
in  bundles,  as  they  do  hemp  in  Europe.  We  agreed  to  her 
proposal,  and  joined  in  this  previous  and  necessary  prepara- 
tion of  the  flax  during  the  rest  of  the  day. 

Next  morning  the  ass  was   put  to  the    small   light  car, 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSOX.  329 

loaded  with  bundles  of  leaves;  Francis  and  the  monkey  sat 
on  them,  and  the  remainder  of  the  family  gaily  followed 
with  shovels  and  pick-axes.  We  stopped  at  the  marsh,  di- 
vided our  large  bundles  into  smaller,  which  we  placed  in 
the  water,  pressing  them  down  with  stones,  and  leaving 
them  in  this  state  till  it  was  time  to  remove  and  set  them  in 
the  sun  to  dry,  and  thus  render  the  stems  soft  and  easy  to 
peel.  In  the  course  of  this  work  we  noticed  with  admiration 
the  instinct  of  the  flamingoes,  in  building  their  cone-shaped 
nests  above  the  level  of  the  marsh,  each  nest  having  a  re- 
cess in  the  upper  part,  in  which  the  eggs  are  securely  depo- 
sited, while  the  contrivance  enables  the  female  to  sit  with 
her  Legs  in  the  water:  the  nest  is  of  clay  closely  cemented, 
so  as  to  resist  all  danger  from  the  element  till  the  young 
can  swim. 

In  a  fortnight  we  took  the  flax  out  of  the  water,  and 
spread  it  on  the  grass  in  the  sun,  where  it  dried  so  rapidly 
that  we  were  able  to  load  it  on  our  cart  the  same  evening, 
and  carry  it  to  Falcon's  Stream,  where  it  was  put  by  till  we 
had  time  to  make  the  beetles,  wheels,  reels,  carding-combs, 
&c.  required  by  our  chief  for  the  manufacture.  It  was 
thought  best  to  reserve  this  task  for  the  rainy  season,  and 
to  employ  the  present  time  in  collecting  a  competent  stock 
of  provisions  for  ourselves  and  for  all  the  animals.  Occa- 
sional slight  showers,  the  harbingers  of  winter,  had  already 
come  on:  the  temperature,  which  hitherto  had  been  warm 
and  serene,  became  gloomy  and  variable;  the  sky  was  often 
darkened  with  clouds,  the  stormy  winds  were  heard,  and 
warned  us  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  favourable  moment  to 
get  all  that  might  be  wanted  ready. 

Our  first  care  was  to  dig  up  a  full  supply  of  potatoes  and 
yams  for  bread,  with  plenty  of  cocoa-nuts,  and  some  bags 

DD 


330  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

of  sweet  acorns.  It  occurred  to  us  while  digging,  that 
the  ground  being  thus  opened  and  manured  with  the  leaves 
of  plants,  we  might  sow  in  it  to  advantage  the  remainder 
of  our  European  corn.  Notwithstanding  all  the  delicacies 
this  stranger  land  afforded  us,  the  force  of  habit  still  caused 
us  to  long  for  the  bread  we  had  been  fed  with  from  child- 
hood: we  had  not  yet  laid  ourselves  out  for  regular  tillage, 
and  I  was  inclined  to  attempt  the  construction  of  a  plough 
of  some  sort  as  soon  as  we  had  a  sufficient  stock  of  corn 
for  sowing.  For  this  time,  therefore,  we  committed  it  to 
the  earth  with  little  preparation:  the  season,  however,  was 
proper  for  sowing  and  planting,  as  the  ensuing  rain  would 
moisten  and  swell  the  embryo  grain,  which  otherwise  would 
perish  in  an  arid,  burning  soil.  We  accordingly  expedited 
the  planting  of  the  various  palm-trees  we  had  discovered 
in  our  excursions,  at  Tent-House,  carefully  selecting  the 
smallest  and  the  youngest.  In  the  environs  we  formed  a 
large  handsome  plantation  of  sugar-canes,  so  as  to  have 
hereafter  every  thing  useful  and  agreeable  around  us,  and 
thus  be  dispensed  from  the  usual  toil  and  loss  of  time  in 
procuring  them. 

These  different  occupations  kept  us  several  weeks  in  un- 
remitted activity  of  mind  and  body;  our  cart  was  incessantly 
in  motion,  conveying  home  our  winter  stock:  time  was  so 
precious,  that  we  did  not  even  make  regular  meals,  and 
limited  ourselves  to  bread,  cheese,  and  fruits,  in  order  to 
shorten  them,  to  return  quickly  to  our  work,  and  despatch 
it  before  the  bad  season  should  set  in. 

Unfortunately,  the  weather  changed  sooner  than  we  had 
expected,  and  than,  with  all  our  care,  we  could  be  prepared 
for:  before  we  had  completed  our  winter  establishment,  the 
rain  fell  in  such    heavy  torrents,  that  I  could  not  refrain 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  331 

from  painful  apprehension  in  surmising  how  we  should  resist 
such  a  body  of  water,  that  seemed  to  change  the  whole  face 
of  the  country  into  a  lake. 

The  first  thing  to  be  done,  was  to  remove  our  aerial  abode, 
and  to  fix  our  residence  at  the  bottom  of  the  tree,  between 
the  roots  and  under  the  tarred  roof  I  had  erected;  for  it  was 
no  longer  possible  to  remain  above,  on  account  of  the  furi- 
ous winds  that  threatened  to  bear  us  away,  and  deluged  our 
beds  with  rain  through  the  large  opening  in  front,  our  only 
protection  here  being  a  piece  of  sail-cloth,  which  was  soon 
dripping  wet  and  rent  to  pieces.  In  this  condition  we  were 
forced  to  take  down  our  hammocks,  mattrasses,  and  every 
article  that  could  be  injured  by  the  rain;  and  most  fortunate 
did  we  deem  ourselves  in  having  made  the  winding  stairs, 
which  sheltered  us  during  the  operation  of  the  removal. 
The  stairs  served  afterwards  for  a  kind  of  lumber-room;  we 
kept  all  in  it  we  could  dispense  with,  arid  most  of  our  cu- 
linary vessels,  which  my  wife  fetched  as  she  happened  to 
want  them.  Our  little  sheds  between  the  roots,  construct- 
ed for  the  poultry  and  the  cattle,  could  scarcely  contain  us 
all;  and  the  first  days  we  passed  in  this  manner  were  pain- 
fully embarrassing,  crowded  all  together,  and  hardly  able  to 
move  in  these  almost  dark  recesses,  which  the  fostid  smell 
from  the  close  adjoining  animals  rendered  almost  insupport- 
able: in  addition,  we  were  half  stifled  with  smoke  whenever 
we  kindled  a  fire,  and  drenched  with  rain  when  we  opened 
the  doors.  For  the  first  time  since  our  disaster,  we  sighed 
for  the  comfortable  houses  of  our  dear  country: — but  what 
was  to  be  done!  we  were  not  there,  and  losing  our  courage 
and  our  temper  would  only  increase  the  evil.  I  strove  to 
raise  the  spirits  of  my  companions,  and  obviate  some  of  the 
inconveniences.      The  now  doubly-precious  winding  stair 


332  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

was,  as  I  have  said,  every  way  useful  to  us;  the  upper  part  of 
it  was  filled  with  numerous  articles  that  gave  us  room  below: 
and  as  it  was  lighted  and  sheltered  by  windows,  my  wife 
often  worked  there,  seated  on  a  stair,  with  her  little  Francis 
at  her  feet.  We  confined  our  live-stock  to  a  smaller  num- 
ber, and  gave  them  a  freer  current  of  air,  dismissing  from 
the  stalls  those  animals  that,  from  their  properties,  and 
being  natives  of  the  country,  would  be  at  no  loss  in  provid- 
ing for  themselves.  That  we  might  not  lose  them  altogeth- 
er, we  tied  bells  round  their  necks;  Fritz  and  I  sought  and 
drove  them  in  every  evening  that  they  did  not  spontaneous- 
ly return.  We  generally  got  wet  to  the  skin  and  chilled 
with  cold,  during  the  employment,  which  induced  my  wife 
to  contrive  for  us  a  kind  of  clothing  more  suitable  to  the  oc- 
casion; she  took  two  seamen's  shirts  from  the  chest,  and 
with  some  pieces  of  old  coats,  she  made  us  a  kind  of  cloth 
hoods  joined  together  at  the  back,  and  well  formed  for  cov- 
ering the  head  entirely:  we  melted  some  elastic  gum,  which 
we  spread  over  the  shirts  and  hoods;  and  the  articles  thus 
prepared  answered  every  purpose  of  water-proof  overalls, 
that  were  of  essential  use  and  comfort  to  us.  Our  young 
rogues  were  ready  with  their  scornful  jokes  the  first  time 
they  saw  us  in  them:  but  afterwards  they  would  have  been 
rejoiced  to  have  had  the  same:  this,  however,  the  reduced 
state  of  our  gum  did  not  allow,  and  we  contented  ourselves 
with  wearing  them  in  turn,  when  compelled  to  work  in  the 
rain,  from  the  bad  effects  of  which  they  effectually  preserv- 
ed us. 

As  to  the  smoke,  our  only  remedy  was  to  open  the  door 
when  we  made  a  fire;  and  we  did  without  as  much  as  we 
could,  living  on  milk  and  cheese,  and  never  making  a  fire 
but  to  bake  our  cakes:  we  then  used  the  occasion  to  boil  a 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  333 

quantity  of  potatoes,  and  salt  meat  enough  to  last  us  a  num 
ber  of  days.  Our  dry  wood  was  also  nearly  expended,  and 
we  thanked  Heaven  the  weather  was  not  very  cold;  for  had 
this  been  the  case,  our  other  trials  would  have  much  increas- 
ed. A  more  serious  concern  was,  our  not  having  provided 
sufficient  hay  and  leaves  for  our  European  cattle,  which  we 
kept  housed  to  avoid  losing  them;  the  cow,  the  ass,  the 
sheep,  and  the  goat,  the  two  last  of  which  were  increased  in 
number,  required  a  large  quantity  of  provender,  so  that  we 
were  ere  long  forced  to  give  them  our  potatoes  and  sweet 
acorns,  which  by  the  by,  they  found  very  palatable,  and  we 
remarked  that  they  imparted  a  delicate  flavour  to  their  milk; 
— the  cow,  the  goats,  and  even  the  sheep,  amply  supplied 
us  with  that  precious  article:  milking,  cleaning  the  animals, 
and  preparing  their  food,  occupied  us  most  of  the  morning, 
after  which  we  were  usually  employed  in  making  flour  of  the 
manioc  root,  with  which  we  filled  the  large  gourds,  previ- 
ously placed  in  rows.  The  gloom  of  the  atmosphere  and 
our  low  windowless  habitation,  sensibly  abridged  our  day- 
light; fortunately,  we  had  laid  in  a  huge  store  of  candles,  and 
felt  no  want  of  that  article:  when  darkness  obliged  us  to 
light  up,  we  got  round  the  table,  where  a  large  taper  fixed 
on  a  gourd  gave  us  an  excellent  light,  which  enabled  my 
wife  to  pursue  her  occupation  with  the  needle,  while  I  on  my 
part  was  forming  a  journal,  and  recording  what  the  reader 
has  perused  of  the  narrative  of  our  shipwreck  and  resi- 
dence in  this  island,  assisted  from  time  to  time  by  my  sons 
and  their  admirable  mother,  who  did  not  cease  to  remind  me 
of  various  incidents  belonging  to  the  story.  To  Ernest,  who 
wrote  a  fine  hand,  was  entrusted  the  care  of  writing  off  my 
pages  in  a  clear  legible  character:  Fritz  and  Jack  amused 
themselves  by  drawing  from  memory,  the  plants  and  ani- 


334  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

mals  which  had  most  struck  their  observation;  while  one 
and  all  contributed  to  teach  little  Francis  to  read  and  write: 
we  concluded  the  day  with  a  devotional  reading  in  the  Holy 
Bible,  performed  by  each  in  turn,  and  we  then  retired  to 
rest,  happy  in  ourselves,  and  in  the  innocent  and  peaceful 
course  of  our  existence.  Our  kind  and  faithful  steward 
often  surprised  us  agreeably  on  our  return  from  looking 
after  the  cattle,  by  lighting  a  fagot  of  dried  bamboo,  and 
quickly  roasting  by  the  clear  and  fervent  heat  it  produced, 
a  chicken,  pigeon,  or  duck,  from  our  poultry  yard,  or  some 
of  the  thrushes  we  had  preserved  in  butter,  which  were  ex- 
cellent, and  welcomed  as  a  treat  to  reward  extraordinary 
toil.  Every  four  or  five  days  the  kind  creature  made  us 
new  fresh  butter  in  the  gourd-churn;  and  this,  with  some 
fragrant  honey  spread  On  our  manioc  cakes,  formed  a  col- 
lation that  would  have  raised  the  envy  of  European  epi- 
cures. These  unexpected  regales  represented  to  our  grate- 
ful hearts  so  many  little  festivals,  the  generous  intention  of 
which  made  us  forget  our  bad  accommodations  and  confine- 
ment. 

The  fragments  of  our  meals  belonged  in  right  to  our  do- 
mestic animals,  as  part  of  the  family.  We  had  now  four 
dogs,  the  eagle,  and  the  monkey,  to  feed;  they  relied  with 
just  confidence  on  the  kindness  of  their  respective  masters, 
who  certainly  would  have  deprived  themselves  to  supply  the 
wants  of  their  helpless  dependants.  Francis  had  taken 
under  his  mighty  protection  the  two  puppies;  my  wife, 
Flora;  and  I,  the  brave  Turk: — thus  each  had  his  attend- 
ant, of  which  he  took  care,  and  no  one  was  dispensed  from 
the  offices  of  tenderness  and  vigilance.  If  the  buffalo,  the 
onagra,  and  pig,  had  not  found  sustenance  abroad,  they 
must  have  been  killed  or  starved,  and  that  would  have  given 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBlNSOxN.  335 

US  much  pain.  In  the  course  of  these  discomforts,  it  was 
unanimously  resolved  on,  that  we  would  not  pass  another 
rainy  season  exposed  to  the  same  evils;  even  my  gentle- 
tempered  and  most  beloved  consort,  was  a  little  ruffled  now 
and  then  with  our  inconvenient  situation,  and  insisted  more 
than  any  of  us  on  the  plan  of  building  elsewhere  a  more  spa- 
cious winter  residence:  she  wished,  however,  to  return  to 
our  castle  in  the  tree  every  summer,  and  we  all  joined  with 
her  in  that  desire.  The  choice  of  a  fresh  abode  now  engross-, 
ed  our  attention,  and  Fritz  in  the  midst  of  consultation  came 
forward  triumphantly  with  a  book  he  had  found  in  the  bot- 
tom of  our  clothes' chest.  "Here,"  said  he,  "is  our  best 
counsellor  and  model,  Robinson  Crusoe;  since  Heaven  has 
destined  us  to  a  similar  fate,  whom  better  can  we  consult? 
As  far  as  I  remember,  he  cut  himself  a  habitation  out  of 
the  solid  rock:  let  us  see  how  he  proceeded;  we  will  do  the 
same,  and  with  greater  ease,  for  he  was  alone;  we  are  six 
in  number,  and  four  of  us  able  to  work."  This  idea  of  Fritz 
was  hailed  by  all.  We  assembled,  and  read  the  famous 
history  with  an  ardent  interest;  it  seemed,  though  so  fam  1- 
iar,  quite  new  to  us:  we  entered  earnestly  into  every  detail, 
and  derived  considerable  information  from  it,  and  never 
failed  to  feel  lively  gratitude  towards  God,  who  had  rescued 
us  all  together,  and  not  permitted  one  only  of  us  to  be  cast,  a 
solitary  being,  on  the  island.  The  occurrence  of  this  thought 
produced  an  overwhelming  sense  of  affection  among  us;  we 
could  not  refrain  from  throwing  ourselves  into  each  other's 
arms,  embracing  repeatedly,  and  the  pathetic  scene  ended 
in  mutual  congratulations. 

Francis  expressed  his  wish  to  have  a  Man  Friday;  Fritz 
thought  it  better  to  be  without  such  a  companion,  and  to 
have  no  savages  to  contend  with.     Jack  was  for  the  savages, 


336  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

warfare,  and  encounters.  The  final  result  of  our  delibera- 
tions was  to  go  and  survey  the  rocks  round  Tent-House,  and 
to  examine  whether  any  of  them  could  be  excavated  for  our 
purpose. 

Our  last  job  for  the  winter,  undertaken  at  my  wife's 
solicitation,  was  a  beetle  for  her  flax,  and  some  carding 
combs.  I  filed  large  nails  till  they  were  even,  round,  and 
pointed;  I  fixed  them  at  equal  distances  in  a  sheet  of  tin, 
and  raised  the  sides  of  it  like  a  box;  I  then  poured  melted 
lead  between  the  nails  and  the  sides,  to  give  firmness  to  their 
points,  which  came  out  four  inches.  I  nailed  this  tin  on  a 
board,  and  the  machine  was  fit  for  work.  My  wife  was  im- 
patient to  use  it;  and  the  drying,  peeling,  and  spinning  her 
flax,  became  from  this  time  a  source  of  inexhaustible  de- 
light. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Spring; — Spinning; — Salt  Mine. 

I  can  hardly  describe  our  joy,  when,  after  many  tedious 
and  gloomy  weeks  of  rain,  the  sky  began  to  brighten,  the  sun 
to  dart  its  benign  rays  on  the  humid  earth,  the  winds  to  be 
lulled,  and  the  state  of  the  air  became  mild  and  serene. 
We  issued  from  our  dreary  hovels  with  joyful  shouts,  and 
walked  round  our  habitation  breathing  the  enlivening  balmy 
ether,  while  our  eyes  were  regaled  with  the  beauteous  ver- 
dure beginning  to  shoot  forth  on  every  side.     Reviving  na- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  357 

ture  opened  her  arms,  every  creature  seemed  reanimated, 
and  we  felt  the  genial  influence  of  that  glorious  luminary 
which  had  been  so  long  concealed  from  our  sight,  and  now 
returned,  like  a  friend  who  had  been  absent,  to  bring  us  back 
blessings  and  delight.  We  rapidly  forgot  in  new  sensations 
the  embarrassments  and  weary  hours  of  the  wet  season,  and 
with  jocund,  hopeful  hearts,  looked  forward  to  the  toils  of 
summer  as  enviable  amusements. 

The  vegetation  of  our  plantation  of  trees  was  rapidly  ad- 
vancing ;  the  seed  we  had  thrown  into  the  ground  was  sprout- 
ing in  slender  blades  that  waved  luxuriantly;  a  pleasing 
tender  foliage  adorned  the  trees;  the  earth  was  enamelled 
with  an  infinite  variety  of  flowers,  whose  agreeable  tints 
diversified  the  verdure  of  the  meadows.  Odorous  exhala- 
tions were  diffused  through  the  atmosphere;  the  song  of 
birds  was  heard  around;  they  were  seen  between  the  leaves, 
joyfully  fluttering  from  branch  to  branch;  their  various  forms 
and  brijliant  plumage  heightened  this  delightful  picture  of 
spring,  and  we  were  at  once  struck  with  wonder  and  pene- 
trated with  gratitude  towards  the  Creator  of  so  many  beau- 
ties. Under  these  impressions  we  celebrated  the  ensuing 
Sunday  in  the  open  air,  and,  if  possible,  with  stronger  emo- 
tions of  piety  than  heretofore.  The  blessings  which  sur- 
rounded us  were  ample  compensation  for  some  uneasy 
moments  which  had  occasionally  intervened ;  and  our  hearts, 
filled  with  fresh  zeal,  were  resolved  to  be  resigned,  if  it 
should  be  the  will  of  God,  to  pass  the  residue  of  our  days 
in  this  solitude  with  serenity  of  soul.  The  force  of  pater- 
nal feelings,  no  doubt,  made  me  sometimes  form  other 
wishes  for  my  children;  but  these  I  buried  in  my  own  breast, 
for  fear  of  disturbing  their  tranquillity:  but  if  I  secretly  in- 
dulged a  desire  for  some  e\ent  that  might  prolong  and  even 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

increase  their  happiness,  I  nevertheless  wholly  submitted 
all  to  the  Divine  will. 

Our  summer  occupations  commenced  by  arranging  and 
thoroughly  cleaning  Falcon's  Nest,  the  order  and  neatness 
of  which  the  rain  and  dead  leaves  blown  by  the  wind  had 
disturbed:  in  other  respects,  however,  it  was  not  injured, 
and  in  a  few  days  we  rendered  it  fit  for  our  reception;  the 
stairs  were  cleared,  the  rooms  between  the  roots  re-occu- 
pied, and  we  were  left  with  leisure  to  proceed  to  other  em- 
ployments. My  wife  lost  not  a  moment  in  resuming  the 
process,  of  her  flax.  Our  sons  hastened  to  lead  the  cattle  to 
the  fresh  pastures;  whilst  it  was  my  task  to  carry  the  bun- 
dles of  flax  into  the  open  air,  where,  by  heaping  stones  to- 
gether, I  contrived  an  oven  sufficiently  commodious  to  dry 
it  well.  The  same  evening  we  all  set  to  work  to  peel,  and 
afterwards  to  beat  it  and  strip  off  the  bark;  and  lastly  to 
comb  it  with  my  carding  machine,  which  fully  answered  the 
purpose.  I  took  this  laborious  task  on  myself,  and  drew 
out  such  distaffs  full  of  long  soft  flax  ready  for  spinning, 
that  my  enraptured  wife  ran  to  embrace  me,  to  express  her 
thankfulness,  requesting  me  to  make  her  a  wheel  without 
delay,  that  she  might  enter  upon  her  favourite  work. 

At  an  earlier  period  of  my  life  I  had  practised  turnery  for 
my  amusement;  now,  however,  I  was  unfortunately  destitute 
of  the  requisite  utensils;  but  as  I  had  not  forgotten  the  ar- 
rangement and  component  parts  of  a  spinning-wheel  and 
reel,  I  by  repeated  endeavours  found  means  to  accomplish 
those  two  machines  to  her  satisfaction;  and  she  fell  so 
eagerly  to  spinning,  as  to  allow  herself  no  leisure  even  for  a 
walk,  and  scarcely  time  to  dress  our  dinners:  nothing  so 
much  delighted  her  as  to  be  left  with  her  little  boy,  whom 
she  employed  to  reel  as  fast  as  she  could  spin,  and  some- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON.  359 

times  the  other  three  were  also  engaged  in  turns  at  the 
wheel,  to  forward  her  business  whilst  she  was  occupied  in 
culinary  offices;  but  not  one  of  them  was  found  so  tractable 
as  the  cool-tempered,  quiet  Ernest,  who  preferred  this  to 
more  laborious  exertions.  Our  first  visit  was  to  Tent- 
House,  and  here  we  found  the  ravages  of  winter  more  con- 
siderable than  even  at  Falcon's  Stream:  the  tempest  and 
rain  had  beaten  down  the  tent,  carried  away  a  part  of  the 
sail-cloth,  and  made  such  havoc  amongst  our  provisions, 
that  by  far  the  largest  portion  was  spotted  with  mildew,  and 
the  remainder  could  be  only  saved  by  drying  them  instantly. 
Luckily,  our  handsome  pinnace  had  been  for  the  most  part 
spared;  it  was  still  at  anchor,  ready  to  serve  us  in  case  of 
need;  but  our  tub-boat  was  in  too  shattered  a  state  to  be  of 
any  further  service. 

In  looking  over  the  stores,  we  were  grieved  to  find  the 
gunpowder,  of  which  I  had  left  three  barrels  in  the  tent,  the 
most  damaged.  The  contents  of  two  were  rendered  wholly 
useless.  I  thought  myself  fortunate  on  finding  the  remain- 
ing one  in  tolerable  condition,  and  derived  from  this  great 
and  irreparable  loss,  a  cogent  motive  to  fix  upon  winter 
quarters,  where  our  stores,  our  only  wealth,  would  not  be 
exposed  to  such  cruel  dilapidations. 

Fritz  and  Jack  were  constant  in  their  endeavours  to 
make  me  undertake  the  excavation  in  the  rock,  but  I  had 
no  hopes  of  success.  Robinson  Crusoe  found  a  spacious 
cavern  that  merely  required  arrangement;  no  such  cavity 
was  apparent  in  our  rock,  which  bore  the  aspect  of  extreme 
solidity  and  impenetrableness;  so  that,  with  our  limited  pow- 
ers, three  or  four  summers  would  scarcely  suffice  to  execute 
the  design.  Still  the  earnest  desire  of  a  more  substantial 
habitation,  to  defend  us  from  the  elements,  perplexed  me 


340  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBlNSOtf. 

incessantly,  and  I  resolved  to  make  at  least  the  attempt  of 
cutting  out  a  recess  that  should  protect  the  gunpowder,  the 
most  valuable  of  all  our  treasures.  I  accordingly  set  off  one 
day,  accompanied  by  my  two  boys,  leaving  their  mother  at 
her  spinning  with  Ernest  and  Francis.  We  took  with  us 
pickaxes,  chisels,  hammers,  and  iron  levers,  to  try  what  im- 
pression we  could  make  on  the  rock.  I  chose  a  part  nearly 
perpendicular,  and  much  better  situated  than  our  tent:  the 
view  from  it  was  enchanting;  for  it  embraced  the  whole 
range  of  Safety  Bay,  the  banks  of  Jackal's  Stream,  and 
Family  Bridge,  and  many  of  the  picturesque  projections  of 
the  rocks.  I  marked  out  with  charcoal  the  opening  we 
wished  to  make,  and  we  began  the  heavy  toil  of  piercing 
the  quarry.  We  made  so  little  progress  the  first  day,  that, 
in  spite  of  our  courage,  we  were  tempted  to  relinquish  the 
undertaking;  we  persevered,  however,  and  my  hope  was 
somewhat  revived  as  I  perceived  the  stone  was  of  a  softer 
texture  as  we  penetrated  deeper:  I  concluded  from  this,  that 
the  ardent  rays  of  the  sun  striking  upon  the  rock  had  hard- 
ened the  external  layer,  and  that  the  stone  within  would  in- 
crease in  softness  as  we  advanced;  and  it  occurred  to" me, 
that  the  substance  might  be  a  species  of  calcareous  stone. 
When  I  had  .put  about  a  foot  in  depth,  we  could  loosen  it 
with  a  spade  like  dried  mud;  this  determined  me  to  proceed 
with  double  ardour,  and  my  boys  assisted  me  with  a  spirit 
and  zeal  beyond  their  years. 

After  a  few  days  of  assiduous  labour,  we  measured  the 
opening,  and  found  we  had  already  advanced  seven  feet 
into  the  rock.  Fritz  removed  the  fragments  in  a  barrow, 
and  discharged  theni  in  a  line  before  the  place,  to  form  a 
sort  of  terrace;  I  applied  my  own  labour  to  the  upper  part, 
to  enlarge  the  aperture;  Jack,  the  smallest  of  the  three,  was 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  341 

able  to  get  in  and  cut  away  below.  He  had  with  him  a 
long  iron  bar  sharpened  at  the  end,  which  he  drove  in  with 
a  hammer,  to  loosen  a  piece  at  a  time;  suddenly  he  bawled 
out:  "  It  is  pierced  through,  father!  Fritz,  I  have  pierced 
it  through!" 

"  Hah,  hah,  master  Jack  at  his  jokes  again! — But  let  us 
hear,  what  have  you  pierced?  Is  it  the  mountain?  Not 
peradventure  your  hand  or  foot,  Jack?"  cried  I. 

Jack. — No,  no,  it  is  the  mountain,  (the  rocks  resounding 
with  his  usual  shout  of  joy);  huzza,  huzza!  I  have  pierced 
the  mountain! 

Fritz  now  ran  to  him.  "  Come,  let  us  see  then:  it  is  no 
doubt  the  globe  at  least  you  have  pierced,"  said  he,  in  a  ban- 
tering tone:  "you  should  have  pushed  on  your  tool  boldly, 
till  you  reached  Europe,  which  they  say  is  under  our  feet; 
I  should  have  been  glad  to  peep  into  that  hole." 

Jack. — Well,  then,  peep  you  may,  but  I  hardly  know  what 
you  will  see;  come  and  look  how* far  the  iron  is  gone  in,  and 
tell  me  if  it  is  all  my  boasting. 

"  Come  hither,  father,"  said  Fritz,  "  this  is  really  extra- 
ordinary; his  iron  bar  seems  to  have  got  to  a  hollow  place; 
see,  it  can  be  moved  in  every  direction."  I  approached, 
thinking  the  incident  worth  attention:  I  took  hold  of  the  bar, 
which  was  still  in  the  rock,  and  working  it  about,  I  made  a 
sufficient  aperture  for  one  of  my  sons  to  pass,  and  I  observed 
that  in  reality  the  rubbish  fell  within  the  cavity,  which  I  judg- 
ed, from  the  falling  of  the  stones,  was  not  much  deeper  than 
the  part  we  stood  on.  My  two  lads  offered  to  go  in  together 
and  examine  it:  this,  however,  I  forbade.  I  even  made  them 
remove  from  the  opening,  as  I  smelled  the  mephitic  air,  that 
issued  abundantly  from  it,  and  began  myself  to  feel  giddiness 
in  consequence  of  having  gone  too  near;  so  that  I  was  com- 


342  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

pelled  to  withdraw  quickly,  and  inhale  a  purer  air.  "  Be- 
ware, my  dear  children,"  said  I,  in  terror,  "of  entering  such 
places,  for  the  loss  of  life  might  be  the  consequence." 

Jack. — How  can  that  be,  father? 

Father. — Because  the  air  is  mephitic,  that  is,  foul,  and 
therefore  unfit  for  breathing  in. 

Jack. — How  does   air  become  mephitic? 

Father. — In  different  ways:  for  example,  when  it  is  replete 
with  noxious  vapours,  or  when  it  contains  too  many  igneous 
or  inflammable  particles,  or  when  it  is  too  heavy  or  dense, 
as  fixed  air  is;,  but  in  general,  when  it  merely  loses  its  elas- 
ticity, it  no  longer  passes  freely  into  the  lungs;  respiration 
is  then  stopped,  and  suffocation  speedly  ensues,  because  air 
is  indispensable  to  life  and  the  circulation  of  the  blood. 

Jack. — Then  all  to  be  done  is,  to  be  off  quickly  when  one 
feels  a  stoppage  of  breath. 

Father. — This  is  certainly  the  natural  course,  when  it  can 
be  taken;  but  the  attack  usually  begins  by  a  vertigo  or  diz- 
ziness of  the  head,  so  violent  as  to  intercept  motion,  which 
is  followed  by  an  insurmountable  oppression;  efforts  are 
made  to  breathe,  fainting  follows,  and,  without  speedy  help,  a 
sudden  death  takes  place. 

Fritz. — What  assistance  can  be  administered? 

Father. — The  first  thing  to  be  done  is  to  remove  the  person 
so  affected  to  pure  fresh  air,  and  to  throw  cold  water  over 
his  body;  he  must  then  be  well  dried,  and  afterwards  rubbed 
with  warm  cloths;  vital  air  must  be  infused,  or  tobacco-smoke 
thrown  up; — in  short,  he  must  be  treated  like  a  drowned  per- 
son till  signs  of  reanimation  appear,  which  is  not  always  the 
result. 

Fritz. — -But  why  do  you  think,  father,  the  air  in  this  cav 
em  is  mephitic,  as  you  term  it,  or  dangerous  to  breath  in? 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  843 

Father. — All  air  confined  and  wholly  separated  from  that 
.of  the  atmosphere,  gradually  loses  its  elasticity,  and  can  no 
longer  pass  through  the  lungs:  in  this  state  it  generates  in- 
jurious qualities  that  interrupt  the  process  of  respiration.  It 
is  in  this  act  that  the  atmospheric  air  diffusea  around  us, 
unites  intimately  with  the  blood,  to  which  it  communicates 
one  of  its  most  essential  parts,  called  vital  air,  for  without  it 
life  cannot  be  supported.  This  air  failing,  respiration  ceas- 
es, and  death  succeeds  in  a  few  minutes:  the  consequence 
is  similar  when  this  air  is  impregnated  too  abundantly  with 
injurious  parts, 

Fritz. — And  by  what  is  good  air  known?  How  judge  that 
one  may  respire  freely  at  a  few  paces  from  this  mephiticcave? 

Father. — This  becomes  evident  when  inspiration  and  expi- 
ration are  performed  with  ease;  besides,  there  is  an  infallible 
test:  fire  does  not  burn  in  foul  air,  yet  it  is  made  the  means 
of  correcting  it.  We  must  light  a  fire  of  sufficient  strength 
in  this  hole  to  purify  the  air  within,  and  render  it  friendly 
to  respiration:  at  first  the  bad  air  will  extinguish  the  fire,  but 
by  degrees  the  fire  in  its  turn  will  expel  the  bad  air  and  bum 
freely. 

Fritz. — Oh!  that  will  be  an  easy  matter. 

The  boys  now  hastened  to  gather  some  dry  moss,  which 
they  made  into  bundles;  they  then  struck  a  light  and  set 
fire  to  them,  and  threw  the  moss  blazing  into  the  opening; 
but,  as  I  had  described,  the  fire  was  extinguished  at  the 
•  very  entrance,  thus  proving  that  the  air  within  was  highly 
mephitic.  I  now  saw  that  it  was  to  be  rarefied  by  another 
and  more  effectual  method;  I  recollected  that  we  had  brought 
from  the  vessel  a  chest  that  was  full  of  grenades,  rockets, 
and  other  fireworks,  which  had  been  shipped  for  the  purpose 
of  making  signals,  as  well  as  for  amusement.     I  sought  it 


344  THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON. 

hastily,  and  took  some  of  these,  together  with  an  iron  mortar 
for  throwing;  out  of  it  I  laid  a  train  of  gunpowder,  and  set 
fire  to  the  end  which  reached  to  where  we  stood:  a  general 
explosion  took  place,  and  an  awful  report  reverberated 
through  the  dark  recess;  the  lighted  grenades  flew  about  on 
all  sides  like  brilliant  meteors,  rebounding  and  bursting 
with  a  terrific  sound.  We  then  sent  in  the  rockets,  which 
had  also  a  full  effect.  They  hissed  in  the  cavity  like  flying 
dragons,  disclosing  to  our  astonished  view  its  vast  extent. 
We  beheid  too,  as  we  thought,  numerous  dazzling  bodies, 
that  sparkled  suddenly,  as  if  by  magic,  and  disappeared 
with  the  rapidity  of  lightning,  leaving  the  place  in  total  dark- 
ness. A  squib  bursting  in  the  form  of  a  star,  presented  a 
spectacle  we  wished  to  be  prolonged.  On  its  separating,  a 
crowd  of  little  winged  genii  came  forth,  each  holding  a  small 
lighted  lamp,  and  the  whole  fluttering  in  every  direction 
with  a  thousand  varied  reverberations:  every  thing  in  the 
cavern  shone  brilliantly,  and  offered  instantly  a  truly  en- 
chanting sight;  but  they  dropped  in  succession,  fell  to  the 
ground  without  noise,  and  vanished  like  ethereal  spirits. 

After  having  played  off  our  fireworks,  I  tried  lighted 
straw:  to  our  great  satisfaction,  the  bundles  thrown  in  were 
entirely  consumed;  we  could  then  reasonably  hope  nothing 
was  to  be  feared  from  the  air;  but  there  still  remained  the 
danger  of  plunging  into  some  abyss,  or  of  meeting  with  a 
body  of  water.  From  these  considerations,  I  deemed  it 
more  prudent  to  defer  our  entrance  into  this  unknown  re- 
cess, till  we  had  lights  to  guide  us  through  it.  I  despatched 
Jack  on  the  buffalo  to  Falcon  Stream,  to  tell  his  mother  and 
brothers  of  our  discovery,  directing  him  to  return  with  them, 
and  bring  all  the  tapers  that  were  left:  my  intention  was  to 
tie  them  together  to  the  end  of  a  stick,  and  proceed  with  it 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON.  345 

lighted  to  examine  the  cavity.  I  had  not  sent  Jack  on  his 
embassy  without  a  meaning;  the  boy  possessed  from  nature 
a  lively  imagination:  I  knew  he  would  tell  his  mother  such 
wonders  of  the  enchanted  grotto,  of  the  fireworks,  and  all 
they  had  brought  to  our  view,  that  he  would  induce  her  to 
accompany  him  without  delay,  and  bring  us  lights  to  pene- 
trate the  obscure  sanctuary. 

Jack,  overjoyed,  sprang  on  the  buffalo,  gayly  smacked 
his  whip,  and  set  off  so  boldly,  that  I  almost  trembled  for 
his  safety.  The  intrepid  boy  was  unincumbered  by  fear, 
and  made  a  complete  race-horse  of  his  horned  Bucephalus. 

In  three  or  four  hours  we  saw  them  coming  up  in  our  car 
of  state,  which  was  now  drawn  by  the  cow  and  the  ass,  and 
conducted  by  Ernest.  Francis  too  played  his  part  in  the 
cavalcade,  and  contended  with  his  brother  for  the  ropes  that 
served  as  reins.  Jack,  mounted  on' his  buffalo,  came  pranc- 
ing before  them;  blew  through  his  closed  hand,  in  imitation 
of  the  French  horn,  and  now  and  then  whipped  the  ass  and 
cow  to  quicken  their  motion.  When  they  had  crossed 
Family  Bridge,  he  came  forward  on  the  gallop;  and  when 
he  got  to  us,  jumped  off  the  beast,  shook  himself,  took  a 
spring  or  two  from  the  ground,  and  thus  refreshed,  ran  up 
to  the  car  to  hand  his  mother  out,  like  a  true  and  gallant 
knight. 

I  immediately  lighted  some  of  the  tapers;  but  not  togeth- 
er, as  I  had  intended;  I  preferred  each  taking  one  in  his 
right  hand,  an  implement  in  his  left,  another  taper  in  his 
pocket,  flint  and  steel;  and  thus  we  entered  the  rock  in  sol- 
emn procession.  I  took  the  lead,  my  sons  followed  me, 
and  their  beloved  mother,  with  the  youngest,  brought  up 
the  rear.  The  interest  and  curiosity  she  felt  were  not  unal- 
loyed with  tender  aporehensions;   and  indeed  I  felt  myself 


346  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

that  sort  of  fear  which  an  unknown  object  is  apt  to  excite; 
even  our  dogs  that  accompanied  us  betrayed  some  timidity, 
and  did  not  run  before  as  usual;  but  we  had  scarcely  advan- 
ced four  paces  within  the  grotto,  when  all  was  changed  to 
more  than  admiration  and  surprise.  The  most  beautiful  and 
magnificent  spectacle  presented  itself.  The  sides  of  the 
cavern  sparkled  like  diamonds,  the  light  from  our  six  tapers 
was  reflected  from  all  parts,  and  had  the  effect  of  a  grand 
illumination.  Innumerable  crystals  of  every  length  and 
shape  hung  from  the  top  of  the  vault;  which,  uniting  with 
those  of  the  sides,  formed  pillars,  altars,  entablature;,  and  a 
variety  of  other  figures,  composing  the  most  splendid  mas- 
ses. We  might  have  fancied  ourselves  in  the  palace  of 
a  fairy,  or  an  illumined  temple.  In  some  places,  all  the 
colours  of  the  prism  were  emitted  from  the  angles  of  the 
crystals,  and  gave  them  the  appearance  of  the  finest  pre- 
cious stones.  The  waving  of  the  lights,  their  bright  corus- 
cations, dark  points  here  and  there  intervening,  the  dazzling 
lustre  of  others — the  whole,  in  short,  delighted  and  enchant- 
ed the  sight  and  the  fancy. 

The  astonishment  of  my  family  was  so  great  as  to  be  al- 
most ludicrous;  they  were  all  in  a  kind  of  dumb  stupor,  half 
imagining  it  was  a  dream.  For  my  own  part,  I  had  seen 
stalactites,  and  read  the  description  of  the  famous  grotto  of 
Antiparos;  my  sensations,  therefore,  were  not  the  same. 
The  bottom  was  level,  covered  with  a  white  and  very  fine 
sand,  as  if  purposely  strewed,  and  so  dry,  that  I  could  not 
see  the  least  mark  of  humidity  anywhere.  All  this  led  me 
to  hope  the  spot  would  be  healthy,  convenient,  and  eligible 
for  our  proposed  residence.  I  now  formed  a  particular  con- 
jecture as  to  the  nature  of  the  crystallizations  shooting  out 
on  all  sides,  and  especially  from  the  arch-roof.     They  could 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  347 

scarcely  be  of  that  species  of  rock-crystals  produced  by  the 
slow  filtering  of  water  falling  in  drops  and  coagulating  in 
succession,  and  seldom  found  in  excavations  exhibiting  so 
dry  a  nature,  nor  ever  with  so  many  of  the  crystals  perpen- 
dicular and  perfectly  smooth.  I  was  impatient  to  evince  the 
truth  or  falsehood  of  this  idea  by  an  experiment,  and  discov- 
ered with  great  joy,  on  breaking  a  portion  of  one  of  them, 
that  I  was  in  a  grotto  of  sal  gem,  that  is,  fossil  or  rock  salt, 
found  in  the  earth  in  solid  crystallized  masses,  generally 
above  a  bed  of  spar  or  gypsum,  and  surrounded  by  layers  of 
fossils  or  rock.  The  discovery  of  this  fact,  which  no  longer 
admitted  a  doubt,  pleased  us  all  exceedingly.  The  shape 
of  the  crystals,  their  little  solidity,  and  finally  their  saline 
taste,  were  decisive  evidences. 

How  highly  advantageous  to  us  and  our  cattle  was  this 
superabundance  of  salt,  pure  and  ready  to  be  shovelled  out 
for  use,  and  preferable  in  all  respects  to  what  we  collected 
on  the  shore,  which  required  to  be  refined!  As  we  advanc- 
ed in  the  grotto,  remarkable  figures  formed  by  the  saline 
matter  everywhere  presented  themselves;  columns  reaching 
from  the  bottom  to  the  top  of  the  vauk  appeared  to  sus- 
tain it,  and  some  even  had  cornices  and  capitals:  here  and 
there  undulating  masses  which  at  certain  distances  resem- 
bled the  sea.  From  the  variegated  and  whimsical  forms  we 
beheld,  fancy  might  make  a  thousand  creations  at  its  pleas- 
ure: windows,  large  open  cupboards,  benches,  church  or- 
naments, grotesque  figures  of  men  and  animals;  some  like 
polished  crystals  or  diamonds,  others  like  blocks  of  alabas- 
ter. 

We  viewed  with  unwearied  curiosity  this  repository  of 
wonders,  and  we  had  all  lighted  our  second  taper,  when  I  ob- 
served on  the  ground  in  some  places  a  number  of  crystal  frag- 


348  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

merits  that  seemed  to  have  fallen  off  from  the  upper  part. 
Such  a  separation  might  recur,  and  expose  us  to  danger;  a 
piece  falling  on  any  of  our  heads  might  prove  instantly  fatal. 
But  on  closer  inspection,  I  was  convinced  they  had  not  drop- 
ped of  themselves  spontaneously;  the  whole  mass  was  too  sol- 
id for  fragments  of  that  size  to  have  been  so  detached  from  it; 
and  had  dampness  loosened  them,  they  would  have  dissolv- 
ed gradually:  I  concluded  they  were  broken  off  by  the  con- 
cussion caused  by  the  explosion  of  our  artillery  and  fire- 
works, and  I  thought  it  prudent  to  retire,  as  other  loosened 
pieces  might  unexpectedly  fall  on  us.  I  directed  my  wife 
and  three  of  the  children  to  place  themselves  in  the  entrance, 
while  Fritz  and  I  carefully  examined  every  part  that  threat- 
ened danger.  We  loaded  our  guns  with  ball,  and  fired  them 
into  the  centre  of  the  cavern,  to  be  more  fully  assured  of 
what  produced  the  separation  of  the  former  pieces;  one  or 
two  more  fell;  the  rest  remained  immovable,  though  we 
went  round  with  long  poles,  and  struck  all  we  could  reach. 
We  at  length  felt  confident,  that  in  point  of  solidity  there 
was  nothing  to  fear,  and  that  we  might  proceed  without  dread 
of  accident.  Loud  exclamations,  projects,  consultations, 
now  succeeded  to  our  mute  astonishment!  Many  schemes 
were  formed  for  converting  this  magnificent  grotto  into  a 
convenient  and  agreeable  mansion  for  our  abode.  We  had 
possession  of  the  most  eligible  premises;  the  sole  business 
was  to  turn  them  to  the  best  account;  and  how  to  effect  this 
was  our  unceasing  theme:  some  voted  for  our  immediate 
establishment  there,  but  they  were  opposed  by  more  saga- 
cious counsel,  and  it  was  resolved  that  Falcon's  Stream 
should  still  be  our  head-quarters  till  the  end  of  the  year. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  349 

CHAPTER   XXX. 

House  in  the  Salt  Rock; — Herring  Fishery. 

The  lucky,  discovery  of  a  previously  existing  cavern  in 
the  rock,  had,  as  must  be  supposed,  considerably  lessened 
our  labour:  excavation  was  no  longer  requisite:  I  had  more 
room  than  was  wanted  for  the  construction  of  our  dwelling; 
to  render  it  habitable  was  the  present  object,  and  to  do  this 
did  not  seem  a  difficult  task.  The  upper  bed  of  the  rock, 
in  front  of  the  cavern,  through  which  my  little  Jack  had  dug 
so  easily,  was  of  a  soft  nature,  and  to  be  worked  with  mod- 
erate effort.  I  hoped  also  that,  being  now  exposed  to  the 
air  and  heat  of  the  sun,  it  would  become  by  degrees  as  hard 
and  compact  as  the  first  layer  that  had  given  me  so  much 
trouble.  From  this  consideration  I  began,  while  it  retained 
its  soft  state,  to  make  openings  for  the  doors  and  windows 
of  the  front.  This  I  regulated  by  the  measurement  of  those 
I  had  fixed  in  my  winding  staircase,  which  I  had  removed 
for  the  purpose  of  placing  them  in  our  winter  tenement.  In- 
tending Falcon's  Nest  in  future  as  a  rural  retreat  for  the 
hottest  days  of  summer,  the  windows  of  the  staircase  be- 
came unnecessary;  and  as  to  the  door,  I  preferred  making 
one  of  bark  similar  to  that  of  the  tree  itself,  as  it  would  the 
better  conceal  our  abode,  should  we  at  any  time  experience' 
invasion  from  savages  or  other  enemies:  the  door  and  win- 
dows were  therefore  taken  to  Tent-House,  and  to  be  here- 
after fixed  in  the  rock.  I  had  previously  marked  out  the 
openings  to  be  cut  for  the  frames,  which  were  received  into 
grooves  for  greater  convenience  and  solidity.     I  took  care 


350  THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ZlOBINSOX. 

not  to  break  the  stone  taken  from  the  apertures,  or  at  least 
to  preserve  it  in  large  pieces,  and  these  I  cut  with  the  saw 
and  chisel  into  oblongs  an  inch  and  half  in  thickness,  to 
serve  as  tiles.  I  laid  them  in  the  sun,  and  was  gratified  in 
seeing  they  hardened  quickly;  I  then  removed  them,  and 
my  sons  placed  them  in  order  against  the  side  of  the  rock, 
till  they  were  wanted  for  our  internal  arrangements. 

When  I  could  enter  the  cavern  freely  with  a  good  door- 
way, and  it  was  sufficiently  lighted  by  the  windows,  I  erect- 
ed a  partition,  for  the  distribution  of  our  apartments  and 
other  conveniences.  The  extent  of  the  place  afforded 
ample  room  for  my  design,  and  even  allowed  me  to  leave 
several  spaces  in  which  salt  and  other  articles  could  be 
stored.  At  the  request  of  my  children,  I  was  cautious  to 
injure  as  little  as  possible  the  natural  embellishments  of 
this  new  family  mansion;  but  with  all  my  care,  I  could  not 
avoid  demolishing  them  in  the  division  allotted  to  the  sta- 
bles: cattle  are  fond  of  salt,  and  would  not  have  failed  to  eat 
away  these  ornaments,  and  perhaps  in  a  prejudicial  quantity: 
however,  to  gratify  and  reward  my  obedient  children,  I  pre- 
served the  finest  of  the  pillars,  and  the  most  beautiful  pieces 
to  decorate  our  saloon.  The  large  ones  served  us  for  chairs 
and  tables;  the  brilliant  pilasters,  at  once  enlivened  and 
adorned  the  apartment,  and  at  night  multiplied  the  reflection 
of  the  lights.  I  laid  out  the  interior  in  the  following  man- 
ner: A  very  considerable  space  was  first  partitioned  off  in 
two  divisions;  the  one  on  the  right  was  appropriated  to  our 
residence;  that  on  the  left  was  to  contain  the  kitchen,  stables, 
and  work-room.  At  the  end  of  the  second  division,  where 
windows  could  not  be  placed,  the  cellar  and  store-room  were 
to  be  formed;  the  whole  separated  by  partition-boards,  with 
doors  of  communication,  so  as  to  give  us  a  pleasant  and  com- 


THE    SWISS    FA?rIILY    ROBIN SCLV.  351 

fortable  abode.  Favoured  so  unexpectedly  by  what  nature 
had  already  effected  of  the  necessary  labour,  we  were  far 
from  repining  ungratefully  at  what  remained  to  be  done,  and 
entertained  full  hope  of  completing  the  undertaking,  or  at 
least  the  chief  parts,  before  winter. 

The  side  we  designed  to  lodge  in,  was  divided  into  three 
-apartments;  the  first,  next  the  door,  was  the  bedroom,  for 
my  wife  and  me,  the  second  a  dining-parlour,  and  the  last 
a  bedroom  for  the  boys:  as  we  had  only  three  windows,  we 
put  one  in  each  sleeping-room;  the  third  was  fixed  in  the 
kitchen,  where  my  wife  would  often  be.  A  grating  for  the 
present  fell  to  the  lot  of  our  dining-room,  which,  when  too 
cold,  was  to  be  exchanged  for  one  of  the  other  apartments.  I 
contrived  a  good  fireplace  in  the  kitchen,  near  the  window;  I 
pierced  the  rock  a  little  above,  and  four  planks  nailed  togeth- 
er, and  passing  through  this  opening,  answered  the  purpose 
of  a  chimney.  We  made  the  work-room  near  the  kitchen, 
of  sufficient  dimensions  for  the  performance  of  undertakings 
of  some  magnitude;  it  served  also  to  keep  our  cart  and 
sledge  in:  lastly  the  stables,  which  were  formed  into  four 
compartments,  to  separate  the  different  species  of  animals, 
occupied  all  the  bottom  of  the  cavern  on  this  side;  on  the 
other  were  the  cellar  and  magazine. 

It  is  readily  imagined,  that  a  plan  of  this  extent  was  not 
to  be  executed  as  if  by  enchantment,  and  that  we  satisfied 
ourselves  in  the  first  instance  with  doing  what  was  most  ur- 
gent, reserving  the  residue  for  winter;  yet  every  day  forward- 
ed the  business  more  than  we  had  been  aware  of.  On  every 
excursion,  we  brought  something  from  Falcon's  Stream, 
that  found  its  place  in  the  new  house,  where  we  deposited 
likewise,  in  safety,  the  remaining  provisions  from  the  tent. 

The  long  stay  we  made  at  Tent-House  during  these  em- 


352  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBIN  SOX. 

ployments,  furnished  us  an  opportunity  of  perceiving  several 
advantages  we  had  not  reckoned  upon.  Immense  turtles 
were  often  seen  on  the  shore,  where  they  deposited  their 
eggs  in  the  sand,  and  they  regaled  us  with  a  rich  treat;  but, 
extending  our  wishes,  we  thought  of  getting  possession  of 
the  turtles  themselves  for  live  stock,  and  of  feasting  on  them 
whenever  we  pleased.  As  soon  as  we  saw  one  on  the  sands, 
one  of  rny  boys  was  despatched  to  cut  off  its  retreat;  mean- 
while we  approached  the  animal,  and  quietly,  without  doing 
it  any  injury,  turned  it  on  its  back,  then  passed  a  long  cord 
through  the  shell,  and  tied  the  end  of  it  to  a  stake,  which 
we  fixed  close  to  the  edge  of  the  water.  This  done,  we 
set  the  prisoner  on  his  legs  again;  it  hastened  into  the  sea, 
but  could  not  go  beyond  the  end  of  the  cord;  apparently  it 
was  all  the  happier,  finding  food  with  more  facility  along 
shore  than  out  at  sea;  and  we  enjoyed  the  idea  of  being 
able  to  take  it  when  wanted.  I  say  nothing  of  sea-lobsters, 
oysters,  and  many  other  small  fishes,  which  we  could  catch 
in  any  number.  The  large  lobsters,  whose  flesh  was  tough 
and  coarse,  were  given  to  the  dogs,  who  preferred  them  to 
potatoes;  but  we  shortly  after  became  possessors  of  another 
excellent  winter  provision,  which  chance  unexpectedly  pro- 
cured us. 

One  morning,  when  near  Safety  Bay,  a  singular  sort  of 
spectacle  presented  itself.  At  some  distance  from  the  shore 
an  extensive  surface  of  the  water  seemed  in  a  state  of  ebul- 
lition, as  if  heated  by  a  subterraneous  fire:  it  swelled,  sub- 
sided, foamed,  like  boiling  water:  a  large  number  of  aquat- 
ic birds  hovered  over  it,  sometimes  they  darted  along  the 
surface  of  the  water,  sometimes  rose  in  the  air,  flying  in  a 
circle,  pursuing  each  other  in  every  direction;  we  were  at 
a  loss  to  judge  whether  sportiveness,  pleasure,  or  warfare 
produced  their  motions. 


THE    SWISS    FAXILY    ROBINSON.  353 

My  wife  and  the  boys  stood  for  a  long  time  admiring  this 
phenomenon  and  indulged  themselves  in  various  ludicrous 
conjectures  concerning  it,  till  I  at  last  informed  them  that 
the  movable  bank  before  us  was  neither  more  nor  less 
than  a  shoal  of  herrings  about  to  enter  Safety  Bay,  and  fall 
into  our  hands.  All  now  had  questions  without  end  to  pro- 
pose about  their  appearing  in  such  numbers,  and  I  answered, 
that  at  a  certain  season,  herrings  leave  the  Frozen  Sea  to- 
gether in  a  heap.  They  swim  so  close  to  each  other,  and 
occupy  such  a  space,  as  to  appear  like  a  bank  or  island  of 
sand,  several  leagues  in  breadth,  some  fathoms  deep,  and 
sometimes  above  a  hundred  thousand  long.  They  afterwards 
divide  into  bodies,  directing  their  course  to  the  coasts  and 
bays,  where  they  spawn,  that  is,  leave  their  eggs  anions  the 
stones  and  sea-plants,  and  to  these  spots  fishermen  from  all 
parts  go  to  catch  them.  The  herrings  appear  eager  to  reach 
those  parts  where  the  tide  is  lowest,  to  escape  the  voracity 
of  the  large  fishes  which  pursue  them,  by  getting  into  shal- 
low water;  but  in  doing  this,  they  become  an  easier  prey  to 
the  birds  and  to  man.  Exposed  to  destruction  in  so  many 
ways,  one  might  wonder  the  species  is  not  extinct,  if  nature 
had  not  provided  against  these  accidents  by  their  astonish- 
ing fecundity:  68,656  eggs  have  been  found  in  a  moderate- 
sized  female:  thus  they  continue  undiminished,  notwithstand- 
ing the  vast  numbers  which  are  destroyed. 

By  this  time  the  shoal  of  herrings  had  reached  the  entrance 
of  our  bay.  They  made  a  loud  rustling  noise  in  the  water, 
leaping  over  each  other,  and  displaying  their  scales  of  sil- 
ver hue.  This  accounted  for  the  luminous  sparks  we  had 
seen  emitted  from  the  sea,  and  which  we  could  not  previ- 
ously explain.  We  had  no  time  for  further  contemplation, 
but  hastened  to  unharness  our  team,  and  supply  the  want  of 

FF 


354  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

nets  with  our  hands  in  catching  the  herrings:  the  boys  trsed 
the  largest  gourds  in  lieu  of  pails,  which  were  no  sooner  dip- 
ped in  than  filled;  and  we  should  have  been  at  a  loss  where 
to  stow  them,  had  I  not  thought  of  employing  the  condemn- 
ed boat  of  tubs.  It  was  accordingly  drawn  to  the  water's 
edge  by  the  buffalo,  and  placed  on  rollers.  My  wife  and 
the  two  youngest  lads  cleaned  it,  whilst  the  other  two  went 
to  the  cavern  for  salt,  and  I  quickly  fitted  ftp  a  sort  of  tent 
of  sail-cloth  on  the  strand,  so  as  to  keep  off  the  rays  of  the 
sun  while  we  were  busied  in  salting.  We  then  all  engaged 
in  the  task,  and  I  allotted  to  each  a  share  adequate  to  his 
strength  and  skill.  Fritz  took  his  station  in  the  water,  to 
bring  us  the  herrings  as  fast  as  caught.  Ernest  and  Jack 
cleaned  them  with  knives;  their  mother  pounded  the  salt; 
Francis  helped  all,  and  I  placed  them  in  the  tubs  as  I  had 
seen  done  in  Europe;  while  a  joyous  shout  declared  the  gen- 
eral activity.  I  put  a  layer  of  salt  at  the  bottom  of  the  bar- 
rel, then  of  fish,  the  heads  towards  the  staves,  proceeding: 
thus  till  my  tubs  were  nearly  full:  I  spread  over  the  last  lay- 
er of  salt  large  palm-tree  leaves,  on  these,  a  piece  of  sail- 
cloth, and  fitted  in  two  half-rounded  planks  for  a  heading, 
which  I  pressed  down  with  stones.  This  effected,  I  put  the 
buffalo  and  the  ass  to  the  cart  again,  and  conveyed  it  to  our 
cool  cellar  in  the  rock.  In  a  few  days,  when  the  herrings 
were  sunk,  I  closed  the  barrels  more  accurately  by  means 
of  a  coating  of  clay  and  flax  over  the  cloth,  which  kept  out 
air  and  moisture  completely,  and  secured  us  an  excellent 
food  for  winter. 

Scarcely  had  we  finished  our  salting,  when  another  nov- 
elty occurred:  a  number  of  sea-dogs  came  into  the  bay  and 
river,  that  had  followed  the  herrings  with  the  utmost  greedi- 
ness, sporting  in  the  water  along  shore,  without  evincing  any 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  355 

fear  of  us.  The  fish  presented  no  attraction  to  the  palate, 
but  its  skin,  tanned  and  dressed,  maizes  excellent  leather. 
I  was  in  great  need  of  it  for  straps  and  harness,  to  make  sad- 
dles for  Fritz  and  Jack  to  ride  the  onagra  and  buffalo,  and 
in  short  for  our  own  use  to  cut  up  into  soles,  belts,  and  pan- 
taloons, of  which  articles  we  much  wanted  a  fresh  supply: 
besides,  I  knew  the  fat  yielded  good  lamp  oil,  that  might  be 
substituted  for  tapers  in  the  long  evenings  of  winter;  and 
that  it  would  be  further  useful  in  tanning  and  rendering  the 
leather  pliant. 

We  had  the  good  fortune  to  b-e  again  successful,  and  in  a 
short  time  we  secured  a  sufficient  number  of  them,  and  care- 
fully preserved  the  fat,  of  which  we  collected  a  large  quan- 
tity; it  was  first  put  into  a  copper,  melted  and  cleansed  prop- 
erly, then  poured  into  casks,  and  kept  for  the  tan-house  and 
lamp.  When  time  should  allow,  I  purposed  making  soap 
with  it,  and  this  design  excited  my  wife's  zeal  in  the  unpleas- 
ant though  ultimately  useful  task  we  were  engaged  in.  We 
also  took  care  of  the  bladders,  which  are  very  large,  for  the 
purpose  of  holding  liquids;  the  remaining  parts  that  could 
not  be  turned  to  account  were  thrown  into  the  river. 

At  this  time  I  likewise  made  some  improvements  in  our 
sledge,  to  facilitate  the  carrying  of  stores  from  Falcon's 
Stream  to  our  dwelling  in  the  rock  at  Tent-House.  I  rais- 
ed it  on  two  beams,  on  axle-trees,  at  the  extremities  of  which 
I  put  on  the  four  gun-carriage  wheels  I  had  taken  off  the 
cannon  from  the  vessel;  by  this  alteration  I  obtained  a  light 
and  convenient  vehicle,  of  moderate  height,  on  which  boxes 
and  casks  could  be  placed.  Pleased  with  the  operations  of 
the  week,  we  set  out  all  together  with  cheerful  hearts  for 
Falcon's  Stream,  to  pass  our  Sunday  there,  and  once  more 
offer  our  pious  thanks  to  the  Almighty,  for  all  the  benefits 
he  had  bestowed  upon  his  defenceless  creatures. 


356  THE    SWISS     FAMILY     ROBINSOIST. 


CHAPTER    XXXL 

JVew    Fishery; — New    Experiments; — .Yew  Discoveries,    and 

House. 

The  enterprise  of  our  dwelling  went  on,  sometimes  as  a 
principal j  sometime&  as  an  intermediate  occupation,  accord- 
ing to  the  greater  or  less  importance  of  other  concerns;  but 
though  we  advanced  thus  with  moderate  rapidity,  the  pro- 
gress was  such  as  to  afford  the  hope  of  our  being  settled 
within  it.  bj  the  time  of  the  rainy  season. 

From  the  moment  I  discovered  gypsum  to  be  the  basis  of 
the  crystal  salt  in  our  grotto,  I  foresaw  some  great  advan- 
tages I  should  derive  from  it;  but  to  avoid  enlarging  the 
dimensions  of  our  house  by  digging  further,  I  tried  to  find  a 
place  in  the  continuation  of  the  rock,  which  I  might  be  able 
to  blow  up:  I  had  soon  the  good  fortune  to  meet  with  a  nar- 
row slip  between  the  projections  of  the  rock,  which  I  could 
easily,  by  the  means  I  proposed,  convert  into  a  passage 
that  should  terminate  in  our  work-room.  I  found  also  on  the 
ground  a  quantity  of  fragments  of  gypsum,  and  removed  a 
great  number  of  them  to  the  kitchen,  where  we  did  not  fait 
to  bake  a  few  of  the  pieces  at  a  time  when  we  made  a  fire 
for  cooking,  which,  thus  calcined,  rubbed  into  a  powder 
whe  i  cold:  we  obtained  a  considerable  quantity  of  it,  which 
I  put  carefully  into  casks  for  use,  when  the  time  should  come 
for  finishing  the  interior  of  our  dwelling.  My  notion  was, 
to  form  the  walls  for  separating  the  apartments,  of  the 
squares  of  stone  I  had  already  provided,  and  to  unite  them  to- 
gether with  a  cement  of  this  new  ingredient,  which  would  he 


m 


THE    SWISS    FAMELY    ROBINSON".  357 

the  means,  both  of  sparing  the  timber,  and  increasing  the 
beauty  and  solidity  of  the  work. 

It  is  almost  incredible  the  immense  quantity  of  plaster  we 
had  in  a  short  time  amassed;  the  boys  were  in  a  constant 
state  of  wonder  as  they  looked  at  the  heap.  I  seized  the  op- 
portunity of  imprinting  on  their  minds  the  value  of  a  firm 
and  steady  perseverance  in  an  object  once  engaged  in, 
the  reward  of  which  they  now  so  agreeably  experienced, 
"  When  we  first  cast  our  eyes,"  continued  I,  "on  this  rock, 
how  little  did  we  conceive  it  possible  to  transform  it  into  a 
comfortable  dwelling-place;  yet  we  have  not  only  in  our  per- 
sons sufficed  for  carpenters  and  masons,  but  even  plasterers 
too;  and  so  effectually,  that,  if  we  had  it  much  at  heart,  we 
might  adorn  our  walls  with  stucco,  as  is  the  mode  in  Europe: 
we  possess  both  the  materials  and  the  intelligence;  and  with 
the  addition  of  patience  and  industry,  there  is  scarcely  any 
thing,  even  what  at  first  should  seem  impossible,  too  difficult 
for  our  performance." 

The  first  use  I  made  of  the  plaster  was  to  complete  some 
covers  I  had  begun  with  other  materials  for  my  herring  tubs, 
four  of  which  I  stopped  down  to  render  them  impenetrable  to 
the  air;  the  rest  of  the  herrings  we  intended  to  dry  and 
smoke.  For  this  purpose  we  erected  a  little  sort  of  hut  of 
reeds  and  branches,  as  is  practised  in  Holland  and  America 
by  the  fishermen:  we  placed  rows  of  sticks,  reaching  from 
side  to  side,  across  the  hut,  laid  the  herrings  upon  them,  and 
then  lighted  a  heap  composed  of  moss  and  fresh  cut  branch- 
es of  trees,  to  produce  a  stronger  and  more  effective  vapour 
for  the  purpose:  we  made  the  door  tight,  and  had  soon  the 
pleasure  of  adding  a  large  stock  of  exquisitely  flavoured 
dried  herrings  to  our  former  store  for  the  ensuing  winter. 

About  a  month  after  the  singular  visit  of  the  herrings, 


358  THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON. 

which  had  now  entirely  left  our  shores,  we  received  another, 
and  not  a  less  profitable  one,  from  a  fish  of  a  different  species: 
we  observed  Safety  Bay  to  be  filled  with  large  fishes,  which 
seemed  eager  to  push  to  the  shore,  for  the  purpose  of  de- 
positing their  eggs  among  the  stones  in  fresh  water. 

As  Jack  and  I  were  walking  near  the  mouth  of  Jackal's 
River  we  perceived  immense  quantities  of  a  large  fish  mov- 
ing slowly  towards  the  banks.  As  they  came  nearer,  I  dis- 
tinguished the  largest  to  be  sturgeons  by  the  pointed  snout, 
while  the  smallest  I  pronounced  to  be  salmon.  Jack  now 
strutted  about  in  ecstasies.  "  What  say  you  now,  father?" 
said  he;  "this  is  nothing  like  your  little  paltry  herrings! 
A  single  fish  of  this  troop  would  fill  a  tub!"^— "  No  doubt," 
answered  I:  and  with  great  gravity  I  added, — "  Prithee, 
Jack,  step  into  the  river,  and  fling  them  to  me  one  by  one, 
that  I  may  take  them  home  to  salt  and  dry." 

He  looked  at  me  for  a  moment  with  a  sort  of  vacant  doubt 
if  I  could  possibly  be  in  earnest;  then  seizing  suddenly  a 
new  idea — "  Wait  a  moment,  father,"  cried  he,  "  and  I  will 
do  so:"  and  he  sprang  off  like  lightning  towards  the  cavern, 
from  whence  he  soon  returned  loaded  with  a  bow  and  arrows, 
the  bladders  of  the  sea-dogs,  and  a  ball  of  string  to  catch,  as 
he  assured  me,  every  one  of  the  fishes.  I  looked  on  with  in- 
terest and  curiosity  to  mark  what  was  next  to  happen,  while 
the  animation  of  his  countenance,  the  promptitude  and  boy- 
ish gracefulness  of  his  motions,  and  the  firm  determination 
of  his  manner,  afforded  me  the  highest  amusement.  He 
tied  the  bladders  round  at  certain  distances  with  a  long 
piece  of  string,  to  the  end  of  which  he  fastened  an  arrow 
and  a  small  iron  hook;  he.  placed  the  large  ball  of  string 
in  a  hole  in  the  ground,  at  a  sufficient  distance  from  the 
water's  edge,  and  then  he  shot  off  an  arrow,  which  the  next 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  359 

instant  stuck  in  one  of  the  largest  fishes.  My  young  sports- 
man uttered  a  shout  of  joy.  At  the  same  moment  Fritz 
joined  us,  and  witnessed  this  unexpected  feat  without  the 
least  symptom  of  jealousy.  "  Well  done,  brother  Jack," 
cried  he,  "  but  let  me  too  have  my  turn." — Saying  this,  he  ran 
back  and  fetched  the  harpoon  and  the  windlass,  and  returned 
to  us  accompanied  by  Ernest.  We  were  well  pleased  with 
their  opportune  arrival,  for  the  salmon  Jack  had  pierced 
struggled  so  fiercely,  that  all  our  endeavours  to.  hold  the 
string  were  insufficient,  and  we  dreaded  at  every  throw  to 
see  it  break,  and  the  animal  make  good  its  escape.  By  de- 
grees, however,  its  strength  was  exhausted,  and  aided  by 
Fritz  and  Ernest,  we  succeeded  in  drawing  it  to  a  bank, 
where  I  put  an  end  to  its  existence. 

This  fortunate  beginning  of  a  plan  for  a  fishery  inspired 
us  all  with  hope  and  emulation.  Fritz  eagerly  seized  his 
harpoon  and  windlass;  I,  for  my  part,  like  Neptune,  wielded 
a  trident;  Ernest  prepared  the  large  fishing-rod;  and  Jack 
his  arrow  with  the  same  apparatus  as  before,  not  forgetting 
the  bladders,  which  were  so  effectual  in  preventing  the  fish 
from  sinking  when  struck.  We  were  now  more  than  ever 
sensible  of  our  loss  in  the  destruction  of  the  tub-boat,  with 
which  we  could  have  pursued  the  creature  in  the  water, 
and  have  been  spared  much  pains  and  difficulty;  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  such  numbers  of  fishes  presented  themselves  at 
the  mouth  of  the  river,  that  we  nad  only  to  choose  among 
them.  Jack's  arrow,  after  missing  twice,  struck  the  third 
time  a  large  sturgeon,  which  was  so  untractable  that  we  had 
great  difficulty  in  securing  him.  I  too  had  caught  two  of 
the  same  fish,  and  had  been  obliged  to  go  up  to  the  middle 
in  the  water  to  manage  my  booty.  Ernest,  with  his  rod  and 
line  and  a  hook,  had  also  taken  two  smaller  one-      Fritz. 


360  the  swiss  family  robinson. 

with  his  harpoon,  had  struck  a  sturgeon  at  least  eight  feet 
in  length,  and  the  skill  and  strength  of  our  whole  company 
were  found  necessary  to  conduct  him  safe  to  shore,  where 
we  harnessed  the  buffalo  to  him  with  strong  cords  to  draw 
him  to  Tent-Kouse. 

Our  first  concern  was  to  clean  our  fish  thoroughly  inside, 
to  preserve  them  fresh  the  longer.  I  separated  the  eggs  I 
found  in  them,  and  which  could  not  be  less  than  thirty 
pounds,  and  put  them  aside  to  make  a  dish  called  caviar, 
greatly  relished  by  the  Russians  and  the  Dutch.  I  took 
care  also  of  the  bladders,  thinking  it  might  be  possible  to 
make  a  glue  from  them,  which  would  be  useful  for  so  many 
purposes.  I  advised  my  wife  to  boil  some  individuals  of  the 
salmon  in  oil,  similar  to  the  manner  of  prepairng  tunny  fish 
in  the  Mediterranean:  and  while  she  was  engaged  in  this 
process,  I  was  at  work  upon  the  caviar  and  the  glue.  For 
the  first,  I  washed  the  berries  in  several  waters,  and  then 
pressed  them  closely  in  gourd-rinds  in  which  a  certain  num- 
ber of  holes  had  been  bored.  When  the  water  had  run  off, 
trie-  berries  were  taken  'out  in  a  substance  like  cheese, 
which  was  then  conveyed  to  the  hut  to  be  dried  and  smok- 
ed. For  the  second,  we  cut  the  bladders  into  strips,  which 
we  fastened  firmly  by  one  end  to  a  stake,  and  taking  hold 
of  the  other  with  a  pair  of  pincers,  we  turned  them  round 
and  round  till  the  strip  was  reduced  to  a  kind  of  knot,  and 
these  were  then  placed  in  the  sun  to  harden;  this  being  the 
simple  and  only  preparation  necessary  for  obtaining  glue 
from  the  ingredient.  When  thoroughly  dry,  a  small  quan- 
tity is  put  on  a  slow  fire  to  melt.  We  succeeded  so  well, 
and  our  glue  was  of  so  transparent  a  quality,  that  I  could 
not  help  feeling  the  desire  to  manufacture  some  pieces  large 
enough  for  panes  to  a  window- frame. 


THE     SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  36'1 

When  these  various  concerns  were  complete,  we  began 
to  meditate  a  plan  for  constructing  a  small  boat  as  a  substi- 
tute for  the  tub-raft,  to  come  close  into  shore.  I  had  a 
great  desire  to  make  it,  as  the  savages  do,  of  the  rind  of  a 
tree;  but  the  difficulty  was  to  fix  on  one  of  sufficient  bulk  for 
my  purpose ;  for  though  many  were  to  be  found  in  our  vicin- 
ity, yet  each  was  on  some  account  or  other  of  too  much 
value  to  be  spared.  We  therefore  resolved  to  make  a  little 
excursion  in  pursuit  of  a  tree  of  capacious  dimensions,  and 
in  a  situation  where  it  was  not  likely  to  yield  us  fruit,  to  re- 
fresh us  with  its  shade,  or  to  adorn  the  landscape  round  our 
dwelling. 

In  this  expedition,  we  as  usual  aimed  at  more  than  one 
object:  eager  as  we  were  for  new  discoveries,  we  yet 
allowed  ourselves  the  time  to  visit  our  different  plantations 
and  stores  at  Falcon's  Stream.  We  were  also  desirous  to 
secure  a  new  supply  of  the  wax  berry,  of  gourds,  and  of 
elastic  gum.  Our  kitchen-garden  at  Tent-House  was  in  a 
flourishing  condition;  nothing  could  exceed  the  luxuriance 
of  the  vegetation,  and,  almost  without  the  trouble  of  cultiva- 
tion, we  had  excellent  roots  and  plants  in  abundance,  which 
came  in  succession,  and  promised  a  rich  supply  of  pease, 
beans  of  all  sorts,  lettuces,  &c;  our  principal  labour  was  to 
give  them  water  freely,  that  they  might  be  fresh  and  succu- 
lent for  use.  We  had  besides,  melons  and  cucumbers  in 
great  plenty,  which,  during  the  hottest  weather,  we  valued 
more  than  all  the  rest.  We  reaped  a  considerable  quantity 
of  Turkey  wheat  from  the  seed  we  had  sown,  and  some  of 
the  ears  were  a  foot  in  length.  Our  sugar-canes  were  also 
in  the  most  prosperous  condition,  and  one  plantation  of 
pine-apples  on  the  high  ground  was  also  in  progress  to  re- 
ward our  labour  with  abundance  of  that  delicious  fruit. 


362  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

This  state  of  general  prosperity  at  Tent-House  gave  us 
the  most  nattering  expectations  from  our  nurseries  at  Fal- 
con's Stream.  Full  of  these  hopes,  we  one  day  set  out 
altogether  for  our  somewhat  neglected  former  ahode. 

We  arrived  at  Falcon's  Stream,  where  we  intended  to 
pass  the  night.  We  visited  the  ground  my  wife  had  so 
plentifully  sowed  with  grain,  which  had  sprung  up  with  an 
almost  incredible  rapidity  and  luxuriance,  and  was  now 
nearly  ready  for  reaping.  We  cut  down  what  was  fairly 
ripe,  bound  it  together  in  bundles,  and  conveyed  it  to  a 
place  where  it  would  be  secure  from  the  attacks  of  more 
expert  grain  consumers  than  ourselves,  of  which  thousands 
hovered  round  the  booty.  We  reaped  barley,  wheat,  rye, 
oats,  pease,  millet,  lentils, — only  a  small  quantity  of  each, 
it  is  .true,  but  sufficient  to  enable  us  to  sow  again  plentifully 
at  the  proper  season.  The  plant  that  had  yielded  the  most 
was  maize,  a  proof  that  it  best  loved  the  soil.  It  had  already 
shown  itself  in  abundance  in  our  garden  at  Tent-House; 
but  here  there  was  a  surface  of  land,  the  size  of  an  ordinary 
field,  entirely  covered  with  its  splendid  golden  ears,  which 
still  more  than  the  other  plants  attracted  the  voracity  of  the 
feathered  race.  The  moment  we  drew  near,  a  dozen  at 
least  of  large  bustards  sprang  up  with  a  loud  rustling  noise 
which  awakened  the  attention  of  the  dogs;  they  plunged  into 
the  thickest  parts,  and  routed  numerous  flocks  of  birds  of 
all  kinds  and  sizes,  who  took  hastily  to  flight:  among  the 
fugitives  were  some  quails,  who  escaped  by  running;  and 
lastly  some  kangaroos,  whose  prodigious  leaps  enabled  them 
to  elude  the  pursuit  of  the  dogs. 

We  were  so  overcome  by  the  surprise  such  an  assemblage 
of  living  creatures  occasioned,  as  to  forget  the  resource  we 
had  in  our  guns;  we  stood  as  it  were  stupid  with  amazement 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON.  363 

during  the  first  moments,  and  before  we  came  to  ourselves, 
the  prey  was  beyond  our  reach,  and  for  the  most  part  out  of 
sight.  Fritz  was  the  first  to  perceive  and  to  feel  with  indig- 
nation the  silly  part  we  had  been  playing,  and  to  consider 
In  what  way  we  could  repair  the  mischief.  Without  further 
loss  of  time,  he  took  the  bandage  from  his  eagle's  eyes  (for 
the  bird  always  accompanied  him  perched  upon  his  game- 
bag),  and  showed  him  with  his  hand  the  bustards  still  flying, 
and  at  no  great  distance.  The  eagle  took  a  rapid  flight. 
Fritz  jumped  like  lightning  on  the  back  of  his  onagra,  and 
galloped  over  every  thing  that  intervened,  in  the  direction 
the  bird  had  taken,  and  we  soon  lost  sight  of  him. 

We  now  beheld  a  spectacle  which  in  the  highest  degree 
excited  our  curiosity  and  interest:  the  eagle  had  soon  his 
prey  in  view;  he  mounted  above  one  of  the  bustards  in  a 
direct  line,  without  losing  sight  of  it  for  an  instant,  and  then 
darted  suddenly  down;  the  bustards  flew  about  in  utter  con- 
fusion, now  seeking  shelter  in  the  bushes,  then  crossing 
each  other  in  every  direction,  in  the  attempt  to  evade  the 
common  enemy;  but  the  eagle  remained  steady  in  pursuit  of 
the  bird  he  had  fixed  upon  for  his  prey,  and  disregarded  all 
the  rest:  he  alighted  on  the  unlucky  bustard,  fixed  his  claws 
and  his  beak  in  its  back,  till  Fritz,  arriving  full  gallop,  got 
down  from  the  onagra,  replaced  the  bandage  on  the  eagle's 
eyes,  seated  him  once  more  upon  the  game-bag,  and  having 
relieved  the  poor  bustard  from  his  persecutor,  he  shouted  to 
us  to  come  and  witness  his  triumph.  We  ran  speedily  to 
the  place. 

At  the  conclusion  of  this  adventure,  we  hastened  forward 
to  Falcon's  Stream,  and  dressed  the  wounds  of  the  bustard. 
We  perceived  with  pleasure  that  it  was  a  male,  and  foresaw 
the  advantage  of  giving  him  for  a  companion  to  our  solitary 


364  THE    SWISS    FAMIbY   ROBltfSON. 

female  of  the  same  species,  which  was  completely  tamed. 
I  threw  a  few  more  bundles  of  maize  into  the  cart,  and 
without  further  delay  we  arrived  at  our  tree,  one  and  all 
sinking  with  faintness  from  hunger,  thirst,  and  fatigue.  It 
was  on  such  occasions  that  my  exemplary  partner  evinced 
the  superior  fortitude  and  generosity  of  her  temper:  though 
necessarily  more  a  sufferer  than  the  rest,  her  first  thought 
was  always  what  she  could  administer  to  relieve  us  in  the 
shortest  time.  On  this  occasion,  as  we  had  consumed  our 
little  store  of  wine,  and  could  not  soon  and  easily  procure 
milk  from  the  cow,  she  contrived  to  bruise  some  of  the  maize 
between  two  large  stones,  and  then  put  it  in  a  linen  cloth,  and 
with  all  her  strength  squeezed  out  the  sap;  she  then  added 
some  juice  from  the  sugar-canes,  and  in  a  few  minutes  pre- 
sented us  with  a  draught  of  a  cool  refreshing  liquid,  inviting- 
ly white  to  the  eye,  and  agreeable  to  the  taste,  which  we  re- 
ceived at  her  hands  with  feelings  of  grateful  emotion. 

The  rest  of  the  day  was  employed  in  picking  the  grains  of 
the  different  sorts  of  corn  from  the  stalks:  we  put  what  we 
wished  to  keep  for  sowing,  into  some  gourd  shells,  and  the 
Turkey  wheat  was  laid  carefully  aside  in  sheaves  till  we 
should  have  time  to  beat  and  separate  it.  Fritz  observed 
that  we  should  also  want  to  grind  it;  and  I  reminded  him 
of  the  handmill  we  had  secured  from  our  departed  ally,  the 
wrecked  vessel. 

Fritz. — But,  father,  the  handmill  is  so  small,  and  so  sub- 
ject to  be  put  out  of  order: — why  should  we  not  contrive  a 
watermill,  as  they  do  in  Europe?  We  have  surely  rapid 
streams  of  water  in  abundance. 

Father.— -This  is  true;  but  such  a  mechanism  is  more  dif- 
ficult than  you  imagine.  The  wheel  alone,  I  conceive, 
would  be  an  undertaking  far  beyond  our  strength  or  our 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  365 

capacity.  I  am,  however,  well  pleased  with  the  activity 
and  zeal  which  prompted  your  idea;  and  we  will  hereafter 
consider  whether  it  may  be  worth  while  to  bestow  upon  it 
further  attention.  We  have  abundance  of  time  before  us, 
for  we  shall  not  want  a  watermill  till  our  harvests  are  such 
as  to  produce  plentiful  crops  of  corn.  In  the  meantime,  let 
us  be  thinking  of  our  proposed  excursion  for  to-morrow;. for 
we  should  set  out,  at  least,  by  sunrise. 

We  began  our  preparations  accordingly.  My  wife  chose 
some  hens  and  two  fine  cocks,  with  the  intention  of  taking 
them  with  us,  and  leaving  them  at  large  to  produce  a  colony 
of  their  species  at  a  considerable  distance  from  our  dwell- 
ing places:  I,  with  the  same  view,  visited  our  beasts,  and 
selected  four  young  pigs,  four  sheep,  two  kids,  and  one 
male  of  each  species;  our  numbers  having  so  much  increas- 
ed, that  we  could  well  afford  to  spare  these  individuals  for 
the  experiment.  If  we  succeeded  in  thus  accustoming  them 
to  the  natural  temperature  and  productions  of  our  island,  we 
should  have  eased  ourselves  of  the  burden  of  their  support, 
and  should  always  be  able  to  find  them  at  pleasure. 

The  next  morning,  after  loading  the  cart  with  all  things 
necessary,  not  forgetting  the  rope-ladder  and  the  portable 
tent,  we  quitted  Falcon's  Stream.  The  animals,  with  their 
legs  tied,  were  all  stationed  in  the  vehicle.  We  left  abun- 
dance of  food  for  those  that  remained  behind;  the  cow,  the 
ass,  and  the  buffalo,  were  harnessed  to  the  cart;  and  Fritz, 
mounted  on  his  favourite,  the  onagra,  pranced  along  befo/e 
us,  to  ascertain  the  best  and  smoothest  path  for  the  caval- 
cade. 

We  took  this  time  a  new  direction,  which  was  straight 
forward  between  the  rocks  ^and  the  shore,  that  we  might 
make  ourselves  acquainted  with  every  thing  contained  in 


366  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

the  island  we  seemed  destined  forever  to  inhabit.  In  effect, 
the  line  proceeding  from  Falcon's  Stream  to  Safety  Bay, 
might  be  said  to  be  the  extent  of  our  dominions:  for  as  to 
the  adjacent  exquisite  country  of  the  buffaloes,  Fritz  and  I 
had  discovered,  that  the  passage  to  it  by  the  end  of  the  rocks 
was  so  dangerous,  and  at  so  great  a  distance,  that  we  could 
not  hope  to  domiciliate  ourselves  upon  its  soil,  as  we  had 
done  on  our  side  of  the  rocks.  We  found,  as  usual,  much 
difficulty  in  pushing  through  the  tall  tough  grass,  and  alter- 
nately through  the  thick  prickly  bushes  which  everywhere 
obtruded  themselves.  We  were  often  obliged  to  turn  aside, 
while  I  cut  a  passage  with  my  hatchet:  but  these  accidents 
seldom  failed  to  reward  my  toil  by  the  discovery  of  different 
small  additions  to  our  general  comforts ;  among  others,  some 
roots  of  trees  curved  by  nature  to  serve  both  for  saddles  and 
yokes  for  our  beasts  of  burden.  I  took  care  to  secure  sev- 
eral, and  put  them  in  the  cart. 

In  about  an  hour  we  found  ourselves  at  the  extremity  of 
the  wood,  and  a  most  singular  phenomenon  presented  itself 
to  our  view:  a  small  plain,  or  rather  a  grove  of  low  bushes, 
to  appearance  almost  covered  with  flakes  of  snow,  lay  ex- 
tended before  us.  Little  Francis  was  the  first  to  call  our 
attention  to  it,  he  being  seated  in  the  cart.  "  Look,  father, " 
cried  he,  "here  is  a  place  full  of  snow;  let  me  get  down, 
and  make  some  snow-balls."  I  could  not  resist  a  hearty 
laugh,  though  myself  completely  at  a  loss  to  explain  the 
nature  of  what  in  colour  and  appearance  bore  so  near  a  re- 
semblance to  it.  Suddenly,  however,  a  suspicion  crossed 
my  mind,  and  was  soon  confirmed  by  Fritz,  who  had  darted 
forward  on  his  onagra,  and  now  returned  with  one  hand 
filled  with  tufts  of  a  most  excellent  species  of  cotton,  so  that 
the  whole  surface  of  low  bushes  was  in  reality  a  plantation 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  367 

of  that  valuable  article.  This  most  useful  of  almost  the 
whole  range  of  vegetable  productions  bestowed  by  Provi- 
dence on  man,  which,  with  the  cost  of  only  a  little  labour, 
supplies  him  with  apparel,  and  commodious  beds  for  the  re- 
pose of  his  limbs,  is  found  in  such  abundance  in  islands, 
that  I  had  been  surprised  at  not  meeting  with  any  before. 
The  pods  had  burst  from  ripeness,  and  the  winds  had  scat- 
tered around  their  flaky  contents;  the  ground  was  strewed 
with  them,  they  had  gathered  in  tufts  on  the  bushes,  and 
they  floated  gently  in  the  air. 

The  joy  of  this  discovery  was  almost  too  great  for  utter- 
ance, and  was  shared  by  all  but  Francis,  who  was  sorry  to 
lose  his  pretty  snowballs;  and  his  mother,  to  soothe  his 
regret,  made  the  cotton  into  balls  for  him  to  play  with,  and 
promised  him  some  new  shirts  and  dresses;  then  turning  to 
me,  she  poured  out  her  kind  heart  in  descriptions  of  all  the 
comfortable  things  she  should  make  for  us,  could  I  but  con- 
struct  a  spinning-wheel,  and  then  a  loom  for  weaving. — We 
ended  with  collecting  as  much  cotton  as  our  bags  would 
hold,  and  my  wife  filled  her  pockets  with  the  seed,  to  raise 
it  in  our  garden  at  Tent-House. 

It  was  now  time  to  proceed ;  and  we  took  a  direction  to- 
wards a  point  of  land  which  skirted  the  wood  of  gourds,  and, 
being  high,  commanded  a  view  of  the  adjacent  country.  I 
conceived  a  wish  to  remove  our  establishment  to  the  vicinity 
of  the  cotton  plantation  and  the  gourd  wood,  which  furnished 
so  many  of  the  utensils  for  daily  use  throughout  the  family. 
I  pleased  myself  in  idea,  with  the  view  of  the  different  colo- 
nies of  animals  I  had  imagined,  both  winged  and  quadruped; 
and  in  this  elevation  of  my  fancy,  I  even  thought  it  might 
be  practicable  to  erect  a  sort  of  farm-house  on  the  soil, 
which  we  might  visit  occasionally,  and  be  welcomed  by  the 


368  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

agreeable  sounds  of  the  cackling  of  our  feathered  subjects, 
which  would  so  forcibly  remind  us  of  the  customs  of  our 
forsaken  but  ever-cherished  country. 

We  accordingly  soon  reached  the  high  ground,  which  I 
found  in  all  respects  favourable  to  my  design;  behind,  a 
thick  forest  gradually  rose  above  us,  which  sheltered  us 
from  the  north  wind,  and  insensibly  declined  towards  the 
south,  ending  in  a  plain  clothed  luxuriantly  with  grass, 
shrubs,  and  plants,  and  watered  by  a  refreshing  rivulet, 
which  was  an  incalculable  advantage  for  our  animals  of 
every  kind,  as  well  as  for  ourselves. 

My  plau  for  a  building  was  approved  by  all,  and  we  lost 
no  time  in  pitching  our  tent,  and  forming  temporary  accom- 
modations for  cooking  our  victuals.  When  we  had  refresh- 
ed ourselves  with  a  meal,  I,  for  my  part,  resolved  to  look 
about  in  all  directions,  that  I  might  completely  understand 
what  we  should  have  to  depend  upon  in  this  place,  in  point 
of  safety,  salubrity,  and  general  accommodation.  I  had 
also  to  find  a  tree  that  would  suit  for  the  proposed  construc- 
tion of  a  boat:  and  lastly,  to  meet,  if  possible,  with  a  group 
of  trees,  at  such  fit  distances,  from  each  other  as  would 
assist  me  in  my  plan  of  erecting  a  farm-house.  I  was  for- 
tunate enough  in  no  long  time  to  find  in  this  last  respect  ex- 
actly what  I  wanted,  and  quite  near  to  the  spot  we  on  many 
accounts  had  felt  to  be  so  enviable.  I  returned  to  my  com- 
panions, whom  I  found  busily  employed  in  preparing  excel- 
lent beds  of  the  cotton,  upon  which,  at  an  earlier  hour 
than  usual,  we  all  retired  to  rest. 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  369 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

Completion  of  two   Farm- Houses  ; — a   Lake; — the   Beast 
with  a  Bill ;  —  a  Boat. 

The  trees  that  I  had  chosen  for  the  construction  of  my 
farm  embellishments,  were  for  the  most  part  one  foot  in  di- 
ameter in  the  trunk;  they  presented  the  form  of  a  tolerably 
regular  parallelogram,  with  its  longest  side  to  the  sea,  the 
length  twenty-four  feet,  and  the  breadth  sixteen.  I  cut  lit- 
tle hollow  places  or  mortices  in  the  trunks,  at  the  distance 
often  fe  t,  one  above  the  other,  to  form  two  stories.  The 
upper  one  I  made  a  few  inches  shorter  before  than  behind, 
that  the  roof  might  be  in  some  degree  shelving;  I  then  in- 
serted beams  five  inches  in  diameter  respectively  in  the  mor- 
tices, and  thus  formed  the  skeleton  of  my  building.  We 
next  nailed  some  laths  from  tree  to  tree,  at  equal  distances 
from  each  other,  to  form  the  roof,  and  placed  on  them,  in 
mathematical  order,  a  covering  composed  of  pieces  of  the 
bark  of  trees,  cut  into  the  shape  of  tiles,  and  in  a  sloping 
position,  for  the  rain  to  run  off  in  the  wet  season.  As  we 
had  no  great  provision  of  iron  nails,  we  used  for  the  purpose 
the  strong  pointed  thorn  of  the  acacia,  which  we  had  discov- 
ered the  day  before.  We  cut  down  a  quantity  of  them,  and 
laid  them  in  the  sun  to  dry,  when  they  became  as  hard  as  iron, 
and  were  of  essential  service  to  our  undertaking.  We  found 
great  difficulty  in  peeling  off  a  sufficient  quantity  of  bark  from 
trees  to  cover  our  roof.  I  began  with  cutting  the  bark  en- 
tirely round  at  distances  of  about  two  feet  all  the  length  of 
the  trunk;   I  next  divided  the  intervals  perpendicularly  into 


1 


370  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

two  parts,  which  I  separated  from  the  tree  by  sliding  a 
wedge  under  the  corners,  to  raise  the  bark  by  degrees;  I 
next  placed  the  pieces  on  the  ground,  with  stones  laid  on 
them  to  prevent  their  curving,  to  dry  in  the  sun;  and  lastly, 
I  nailed  them  on  the  roof,  where  they  had  the  appearance 
of  fishes'  scales — an  effect  that  was  not  only  pleasing  to  the 
eye,  but  reminded  us  of  the  roofs  of  our  native  land. 

On  this  occasion  we  made  another  agreeable  discovery: 
my  wife  took  up  the  remaining  chips  of  the  bark  for  light- 
ing a  fire,  supposing  they  would  burn  easily;  we  were  sur- 
prised by  a  delicious  aromatic  odour,  which  perfumed  the 
air.  On  examining  the  half-consumed  substance,  we  found 
some  of  the  pieces  to  contain  turpentine,  and  others  gum  inas- 
tich,  so  that  we  might  rely  on  a  supply  of  these  ingredients 
from  the  trees  which  had  furnished  the  bark.  It  was  less 
with  a  view  to  the  gratifying  our  sense  of  smelling,  than  with 
the  hope  of  being  able  to  secure  these  valuable  drugs  for  mak- 
ing a  sort  of  pitch  to  complete  our  meditated  boat,  that  we 
indulged  our  earnestness  in  the  pursuit.  The  instinct  of  our 
goats,  or  the  acuteness  of  their  smell,  discovered  for  us  anoth- 
er pleasing  acquisition:  we  observed  with  surprise,  that  they 
ran  from  a  distance  to  roll  themselves  on  some  chips  of  a 
particular  bark  which  lay  on  the  ground,  and  which  they  be- 
gan to  chew  and  eat  greedily.  Jack  seized  a  piece  also,  to 
find  out  what  could  be  the  reason  of  so  marked  a  preference 
as  the  goats  had  shown.  My  wife  and  I  then  followed  his 
example,  and  we  were  all  convinced  that  the  chips  were 
cinnamon;,  though  not  so  fine  a  sort  as  that  from  the  isle  of 
Ceylon. 

This  new  commodity  was  certainly  of  no  great  importance 
to  us;  but  we  regarded  it  with  pleasure,  as  it  might  assist 
to  distinguish  some  day  of  rejoicing.     The  tree  from  which 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY   R0BIJSTS07T.  ST  I 

we  had  taken  our  bark  was  old,  and  the  cinnamon  was  the 
coarser  flavoured  on  this  account:  I  remembered  to  have 
read,  that  young  trees  produce  this  spice  in  much  greater 
perfection. 

After  our  next  meal  we  resumed  with  ardour  our  under- 
taking of  the  farm,  which  we  continued  without  interruption 
for  several  days.  We  formed  the  walls  with  matted  reeds 
interwoven  with  pliant  laths  to  the  height  of  six  feet;  the 
remaining  space  to  the  roof  was  enclosed  with  only  a  simple- 
grating,  that  the  air  and  light  might  be  admitted.  A  door 
was  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  front.  We  next  arranged 
the  interior  with  as  much  convenience  as  the  shortness  of 
the  time  and  our  reluctance  to  use  all  our  timber  would  al- 
low; we  divided  it  half  way  up  by  a  partition  wall  into  two  un- 
equal parts ;  the  largest  was  intended  for  the  sheep  and  goatsy 
and  the  smallest  for  ourselves,  when  we  should  wish  to  pass 
a  few  days  here.  At  the  further  end  of  the  stable  we  fixed  a 
house  for  the  fowls,  and  above  it  a  sort  of  hayloft  for  the 
forage.  Before  the  door  of  entrance  we  placed  two  benches,, 
contrived  as  well  as  we  could  of  laths  and  odd  pieces  of  wood,, 
that  we  might  rest  ourselves  under  the  shade  of  the  trees^ 
and  enjoy  the  exquisite  prospect  which  presented  itself  on 
all  sides.  Our  own  apartment  was  provided  with  a  couple 
of  the  best  bedsteads  we  could  make  of  twigs  of  trees,  rais- 
ed upon  four  legs,  two  feet  from  the  ground,  and  these  were 
destined  to  receive  our  cotton  mattrasses.  Our  aim  was  to- 
content  ourselves  for  the  present  with  these  slight  hints  of 
a  dwelling,  and  to  consider  hereafter  what  additions  either 
of  convenience  or  ornament  could  be  made,  such  as  plaster- 
ing, &c.  &c.  All  we  were  now  anxious  about,  was  to  provide 
a  shelter  for  our  animal  colonists,  which  should  encourage 
and  fix  them  in  the  habit  of  assembling  every  evening  in  one 


372  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON. 

place.  For  several  days,  at  first,  we  took  care  to  fill  their 
troughs  with  their  favourite  food,  mixed  with  salt,  and  we 
agreed  that  we  would  return  frequently  to  repeat  this  indi- 
rect mode  of  invitation  for  their  society,  till  they  should  be 
entirely  fixed  in  their  expectation  of  finding  it. 

I  had  imagined  we  could  accomplish  what  we  wished  at 
the  farm  in  three  or  four  days;  but  we  found  in  the  experi- 
ment that  a  whole  week  was  necessary,  and  our  victuals  fell 
short  before  our  work  was  done.  We  began  to  consider 
what  remedy  we  could  apply  to  so  embarrassing  a  circum- 
stance; I  could  not  prevail  upon  myself  to  return  to  Falcon's 
Stream,  before  I  had  completed  my  intentions  at  the  farm, 
and  the  other  objects  of  my  journey.  I  had  even  come  to  the 
determination  of  erecting  another  building  upon  the  site  of 
Cape  Disappointment;  I  therefore  decided,  that  on  this  try- 
ing occasion  I  would  invest  Fritz  and  Jack  with  the  im- 
portant mission.  They  were  accordingly  despatched  to 
Falcon's  Stream,  and  to  Tent-House,  to  fetch  new  supplies 
of  cheese,  ham,  potatoes,  dried  fish,  manioc  bread,  for  our 
subsistence,  and  also  to  distribute  fresh  food  to  the  numer- 
ous animals  we  had  left  there.  I  directed  one  to  mount  the 
onagra,  and  the  other  the  buffalo.  My  two  knights-errant, 
proud  of  their  embassy,  set  off  with  a  brisk  trot;  they  at  my 
desire  took  with  them  the  old  ass,  to  bring  the  load  of  provis- 
ions. Fritz  was  to  lead  him  with  a  bridle,  while  Jack 
smacked  a  whip  near  his  ears  to  quicken  his  motions;  and 
certainly,  whether  from  the  influence  of  climate,  or  the  ex- 
ample of  his  companion  the  onagra,  he  had  lost  much  of  his 
accustomed  inactivity;  and  this  was  the  more  important,  as 
I  intended  to  make  a  saddle  for  my  wife  to  get  on  his  back, 
and  relieve  herself  occasionally  from  the  fatigue  of  walking 

During  the  absence  of  our  purveyors,  I  rambled  with  Er- 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON.  37-3 

» 

nest  about  the  neighbouring  soil,  to  make  what  new  dis- 
coveries I  could,  and  to  procure,  if  possible,  additions  to 
our  store  of  provisions.  We  followed  the  winding  of  a  river 
towards  the  middle  of  the  wall  of  rocks;  our  course  was  in- 
terrupted by  a  marsh  which  bordered  a  small  lake,  the  as- 
pect of  which  was  enchantingly  picturesque.  I  perceived, 
with  joyful  surprise  that  the  whole  surface  of  the  swampy 
soil  was  covered  with  a  kind  of  wild  rice,  ripe  on  the  stalk, 
and  which  attracted  the  voracity  of  large  flocks  of  birds. 
As  we  approached,  a  loud  rustling  w7as  heard,  and  we  dis- 
tinguished on  the  wTing,  bustards,  Canada  heath-fowl,  and 
great  numbers  of  smaller  birds.  We  succeeded  in  bringing 
down  five  or  six  of  them,  and  I  was  pleased  to  remark  in  Er- 
nest a  justness  of  aim  that  promised  well  for  the  future. 
The  habits  of  his  mind  discovered  themselves  on  this  as  on 
many  previous  occasions;  he  betrayed  no  ardour,  he  did 
every  thing  with  a  slowness  that  seemed  to  imply  dislike; 
yet  the  cool  deliberation  and  constancy  he  applied  to  every 
attempt  so  effectually  assisted  his  judgment,  that  he  was 
sure  to  arrive  at  a  more  perfect  execution  than  the  other 
boys.  He  had  practised  but  little  in  the  study  of  how  to 
fire  a  gun  to  the  best  advantage;  but  Ernest  was  a  silent 
inquirer  and  observer,  and  accordingly  his  first  essays  were 
generally  crowned  with  success. 

Presently  we  saw  Master  Knips  jump  from  Flora's  back, 
and  smell  along  the  ground  among  some  thick  growing  plants, 
then  pluck  off  something  with  his  two  paws,  and  eat  of  it 
voraciously.  We  ran  to  the  spot  to  see  what  it  could  be, 
when,  to  the  relief  of  our  parched  palates,  we  found  he  had 
discovered  there  the  largest  and  finest  kind  of  strawberry, 
which  is  called  in  Europe  the  Chili,  or  pine  strawberry. — 
On  this  occasion,  the  proud  creature,  man,  generously  con- 


374  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON, 

descended  to  be  the  imitator  of  a  monkey:  we  threw  otn> 
selves  upon  the  ground,  as  near  to  Knips  as  wo  could  creep, 
and  eat  as  fast  as  we  could  swallow,  till  we  felt  refreshed. 
Many  of  these  strawberries  were  of  an  enormous  size,  and 
Ernest,  after  devouring  an  immense  quantity,  recollected  his 
absent  friends,  and  filled  a  small  gourd-shell  with  the  finest 
fruit,  then  covered  them  with  leaves,  and  tied  them  down 
with  a  tendril  from  a  neighbouring  plant,  to  present  them 
in  perfection  to  his  mother.  I,  on  my  part,  gathered  a  spe- 
cimen of  the  rice  to  offer,  that  she  might  inform  us  if  it  was 
fit  for  culinary  purposes. 

Pursuing  our  way  a  little  further  along  the  marsh,  we 
reached  the  lake,  which  we  had  descried  with  so  much 
pleasure  from  a  distance,  and  whose  banks,  being  overgrown 
with  thick  underwood,  were  necessarily  concealed  from  the 
momentary  view  we  had  leisure  to  take  of  surrounding  ob- 
jects, particularly  as  the  lake  was  situated  in  a  deep  and 
abrupt  valley.  No  one,  who  is  not  a  native  of  Switzerland, 
can  conceive  the  emotion  which  trembled  at  my  heart,  as  I 
contemplated  this  limpid,  azure,  undulating  body  of  water, 
the  faithful  miniature  of  so  many  grand  originals,  which  I 
had  probably  lost  sight  of  forever !  My  eyes  swam  with  tears! 
Alas!  a  single  glance  upon  the  surrounding  picture,  the  dif- 
ferent characters  of  the  trees,  the  vast  ocean  in  the  distance* 
destroyed  the  momentary  illusion,  and  brought  back  my 
ideas  to  the  painful  reality,  that  I  and  mine  were— strangers 
in  a  desert  island! 

Another  sort  of  object  now  presented  itself  to  confirm  the 
certainty  that  we  were  no  longer  inhabitants  of  Europe;  it 
was  the  appearance  of  a  quantity  of  swans  gliding  over 
the  surface  of  the  fake;  but  their  colour,  instead  of  white, 
like  those  of  our  country,  was  a  jetty  black,  and  their  plu- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSONr  375 

mage  had  so  high  a  gloss  as  to  produce,  reflected  on  the 
water,  the  most  astonishing  effect.  The  six  large  feathers 
of  the  wings  of  this  bird  are  white,  exhibiting  a  singular 
contrast  to  the  rest  of  the  body;  in  other  respects  these 
birds  were  remarkable,  like  those  of  Europe,  for  the  haugh- 
ty gracefulness  of  their  motions,  and  the  voluptuous  ease  of 
their  nature.  We  remained  a  long  time  in  silent  admiration 
of  them:  some  of  the  swans  pursued  their  course  magnifi- 
cently on  the  bosom  of  the  blue  water;  others  stopped  and 
seemed  to  hold  deliberations  with  their  companions,  or  to 
admire  themselves,  or  caress  each  other;  many  young  ones 
followed  in  the  train  of  the  parent  bird,  who  frequently 
turned  half  round,  in  execution  of  her  watchful  and  matronly 
office.  This  was  a  spectacle  which  I  could  not  allow  to  be 
interrupted  by  bloodshed,  though  Ernest,  rendered  a  little 
vain  by  his  success  and  my  encomiums,  would  have  been 
ready  to  fire  upon  the  swans,  if  I  had  not  absolutely  for- 
bidden the  attempt;  at  the  same  time  I  consoled  him  with 
the  promise,  that  we  would  endeavour  to  -obtain  a  pair  of 
the  interesting  creatures  for  our  establishment  at  Falcon's 
Stream. 

Flora  at  this  moment  dragged  out  of  the  water  a  creature 
she  had  killed.  It  was  somewhat  in  shape  like  an  otter, 
and  like  the  tribe  of  water  birds,  web-footed:  its  tail  was 
long  and  erect,  and  covered  with  a  soft  kind  of  hair;  the 
head  was  very  small,  and  the  ears  and  eyes  were  almost  in- 
visible; to  these  more  ordinary  characters  was  added,  a  long 
flat  bill,  like  that  of  a  duck,  which  protruded  from  its  snout, 
and  produced  so  ludicrous  an  effect  that  we  could  not  resist 
a  hearty  laugh.  All  the  science  of  the  learned  Ernest, 
joined  with  my  own,  was  insufficient  to  ascertain  the  name 
and  nature  of  this  animal.     We  had  no  resource  but  to  re- 


376  THE    SWISS    FAMILY   ROBINSON. 

main  ignorant;  in  the  meantime  we  christened  it  by  the 
name  of  Beast  with  a  Bill,  and  decided  that  it  should  be  care- 
fully stuffed  and  preserved. 

We  now  began  to  look  for  the  shortest  path  for  return- 
ing to  the  farm,  which  we  reached  at  the  same  time  with 
Fritz  and  Jack,  who  had  well  performed  the  object  of  their 
journey.  We,  on  our  parts,  produced  our  offering  of  straw- 
berries and  our  specimen  of  rice,  which  were  welcomed 
with  shouts  of  pleasure  and  surprise. 

The  beast  with  a  bill  was  next  examined  with  eager  curi- 
osity, and  then  laid  aside  for  the  plan  I  had  formed.  My 
wife  proceeded  to  pluck  and  salt  the  birds  we  had  killed, 
reserving  one  fresh  for  our  supper,  which  we  partook  of  to- 
gether upon  the  benches  before  the  door  of  our  new  habita- 
tion. We  filled  the  stable  with  forage,  laid  a  large  provision 
of  grain  for  the  fowls  within  their  house,  and  began  arrange- 
ments for  our  departure. 

The  following  day  we  took  a  silent  leave  of  our  animals, 
and  directed  our  course  towards  the  eminence  in  the  vicinity 
of  Cape  Disappointment;  we  ascended  it,  and  found  it  in 
every  respect  adapted  to  our  wishes.  From  this  eminence 
we  had  a  view  over  the  country  which  surrounded  Falcon's 
Stream  in  one  direction,  and  in  others  of  a  richly  diversified 
extent  of  landscape,  comprehending  sea,  land,  and  rocks. 
When  we  had  paused  for  a  short  time  upon  the  exhaustless 
beauties  of  the  scene,  we  agreed  with  one  voice,  that  it 
should  be  on  this  spot  we  would  build  our  second  cottage. 
A  spring  of  the  clearest  water  issued  from  the  soil  near  the 
summit,  and  flowed  over  its  sloping  side,  forming  agreeable 
cascades  in  its  rapid  course;  in  short,  every  feature  of  the 
picture  contributed  to  form  a  landscape  worthy  the  homage 
of  a  taste  the  most  delicate  and  refined.     I  presented  my 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  377 

children  with  an  appropriate  word. — "Let  us  build  here," 
exclaimed  I,  "and  call  the  spot — -Arcadia;"  to  which  my 
wife  and  all  agreed. 

We  lost  no  time  in  again  setting  to  work;  our  experience 
at  the  farm  enabled  us  to  proceed  with  incredible  rapidity, 
and  our  success  was  in  every  respect  more  complete.  The 
building  contained  a  dining-room,  two  bedchambers,  two 
stables,  and  a  storeroom  for  preserving  all  kinds  of  pro- 
visions for  man  and  beast.  We  formed  the  roof  square,  with 
four  sloped  sides,  and  the  whole  had  really  the  appearance 
of  a  European  cottage,  and  was  finished  in  the  short  space 
of  six  days.  What  now  remained  to  be  done,  was  to  fix  on 
a  tree  fit  for  my  project  of  a  boat.  After  much  search,  I  at 
length  found  one  of  prodigious  size,  and  in  most  respects 
suitable  to  my  views. 

It  was,  however,  no  very  encouraging  prospect  I  had  be- 
fore me,  being  nothing  less  than  the  stripping  off  a  piece  of 
the  bark  that  should  be  eighteen  feet  in  length,  and  five  in 
diameter;  and  now  I  found  my  rope-ladder  of  signal  service; 
we  fastened  it  by  one  end  to  the  nearest  branches,  and  it 
enabled  us  to  work  with  the  saw,  as  might  be  necessary,  at 
any  height  from  the  ground.  Accordingly,  we  cut  quite 
round  the  trunk  in  two  places,  and  then  took  a  perpendicular 
slip  from  the  whole  length  between  the  circles;  by  this 
means  we  could  introduce  the  proper  utensils  for  raising 
the  rest  by  degrees,  till  it  was  entirely  separated.  We 
toiled  with  increasing  anxiety,  at  every  moment  dreading 
that  we  should  not  be  able  to  preserve  it  from  breaking,  or 
uninjured  by  our  tools.  When  we  had  loosened  about  half, 
we  supported  it  by  means  of  cords  and  pulleys;  and  when 
all  was  at  length  detached,  we  let  it  down  gently,  and  with 
ioy  beheld  it  lying  safe  on  the  grass.     Our  business  was 

J  hh  r 


378  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSOtf. 

next  to  mould  it  to  our  purpose,  while  the  substance  con 
tinued  moist  and  flexible. 

The  boys  observed  that  we  had  now  nothing  more  to  do, 
than  to  nail  a  plank  at  each  end,  and  our  boat  would  be  as 
complete  as  those  used  by  the  savages;  but,  for  my  own 
part,  I  could  not  be  contented  with  a  mere  roll  of  bark  for  a 
boat;  and  when  I  reminded  them  of  the  paltry  figure  it 
would  make,  following  the  pinnace,  I  heard  not  another 
word  about  the  further  pains  and  trouble,  and  they  asked 
eagerly  for  my  instructions.  I  made  them  assist  me  to  saw 
the  bark  in  the  middle  of  the  two  ends,  the  length  of  several 
feet;  these  two  parts  I  folded  over  till  they  ended  in  a  pointy 
I  kept  them  in  this  form  by  the  help  of  the  strong  glue  I  had 
before  made  from  fish-bladders,  and  pieces  of  wood  nailed 
fast  over  the  wlhole:  this  operation  tended  to  widen  the  boat 
in  the  middle,  and  thus  render  it  of  too  flat  a  form;  but  this 
we  counteracted  by  straining  a  cord  all  round,  which  again 
reduced  it  to  the  due  proportion,  and  in  this  state  we  put  it 
in  the  sun,  to  harden*  and  fix.  Many  things  were  still  want- 
ing to  the  completion  of  my  undertaking,  but  I  had  not  with 
me  proper  utensils:  I  therefore  despatched  the  boys  to* 
Tent-House,  to  fetch  the  sledge,  and  convey  it  there  for 
our  better  convenience  in  finishing. 

Before  our  departure  for  Tent-House,  we  collected  sev- 
eral new  plants  for  our  kitchen-garden;  and  lastly,  we  made 
another  trip  to  the  narrow  strait  at  the  end  of  the  wall  of 
rocks,  resolved,  as  I  before  mentioned,  to  plant  there  a 
sort  of  fortification  of  trees,  which  should  produce  the 
double  effect  of  discouraging  the  invasion  of  savages,  and 
allowing  us  to  keep  our  pigs  on  the  other  side,  and  thus 
secure  our  different  plantations  from  the  chance  of  injury. 
We  accomplished  all  these  intentions  to  our  entire  satis- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  379 

faction,  and  in  addition,  we  placed  a  slight  drawbridge 
across  the  river  beyond  the  narrow  pass,  which  we  could 
let  down  or  take  up  at  pleasure  on  our  side.  We  now 
hastened  our  return  to  Arcadia,  and  after  a  night's  repose 
we  loaded  the  sledge  with  the  boat  and  other  matters,  and 
returned  to  Tent-House. 

As  soon  as  we  had  despatched  some  necessary  affairs,  we 
resumed  the  completion  of  the  boat:  in  two  days  she  had 
received  the  addition  of  a  keel,  a  neat  lining  of  wood,  a 
small  flat  floor,  benches,  a  small  mast  and  triangular  sail, 
a  rudder,  and  a  thick  coat  of  pitch  on  the  outside,  so  that 
the  first  time  we  saw  her  in  the  water,  we  were  all  in  ec- 
stasies at  the  charming  appearance  she  made. 

Our  cow  in  the  meantime  had  brought  forth  a  young 
calf,  a  male;  I  pierced  its  nostril,  as  I  had  so  successfully 
practised  with  the  buffalo,  and  it  gave  promise  of  future 
docility  and  strength. 

We  had  still  two  months  in  prospect  before  the  rainy  sea- 
son, and  we  employed  them  for  completing  our  abode  in  the 
grotto,  with  the  exception  of  such  ornaments  as  we  might 
have  time  to  think  of  during  the  long  days  of  winter.  We 
made  the  internal  divisions  of  planks,  and  that  which  sepa- 
rated ns  from  the  stables,  of  stone,  to  protect  us  from  the 
offensive  smell  occasioned  by  the  animals.  Our  task  was 
difficult,  but  from  habit  it  became  easier  every  day.  We 
took  care  to  collect  or  manufacture  a  sufficient  quantity  of 
all  sorts  of  materials,  such  as  beams  and  planks,  reeds  and 
twigs  for  matting,  pieces- of  gypsum  for  plaster,  &c.  &c. 
At  length  the  time  of  the  rainy  season  was  near  at  hand, 
and  we  thought  of  it  with  pleasure,  as  it  would  put  us  in 
possession  of  the  enjoyments  we  had  procured  by  such 
unremitting  industry  and  fatigue.     We  had  an  inexpressible 


380  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSONS 

longing  to  find  ourselves  domiciliated,  and  at  feisure  to  con- 
verse together  on  the  subject  of  all  the  wondrons  benefits 
bestowed  upon  us  by  an  ever  watchful  and  beneficent  Prov- 
idence! 

We  plastered  over  the  walls  of  the  principal  apartments 
on  each  side  with  the  greatest  care,  finishing  them  by  pres- 
sure with  aflat  smooth  board,  and  lastly  a  wash  of  size,  in 
the  manner  of  the  plasterers  in  Europe.  This  ornamental 
portion  of  our  work  amused  us  all  so  much,  that  we  began 
to  think  we  might  venture  a  step  further  in  European  luxu- 
ry, and  agreed  that  we  would  attempt  to  make  some  carpets 
with  the  hair  of  our  goats.  To  this  effect  we  smoothed  the 
ground  in  the  rooms  we  intended  to  distinguish,  with  great 
care;  then  spread  over  it  some  sail-cloth,  which  my  wife 
had  joined  in  breadths,  and  fitted  exactly;  we  next  strewed 
the  goatsr  hair^  mixed  with  wool  obtained  from  the  sheep,, 
over  the  whole;  on  this  surface  we  threw  some  hot  water, 
in  which  a  strong  cement  had  been  dissolved;  the  whole 
was  then  rolled  up,  and  was  beaten  for  a  considerable  time 
with  hard  sticks;  the  sail-cloth  was  now  unrolled,  and  the 
inside  again  sprinkled,  rolled,  and  beaten  as  before;  and 
this  process  was  continued  till  the  substance  had  become  a 
sort  of  felt,  which  could  be  separated  from  the  sail-cloth, 
and  was  lastly  put  in  the  sun  to  harden.  We  thus  produced 
a  very  tolerable  substitute  for  that  enviable  article  of  Eu- 
ropean comfort,  a  carpet:  of  these  we  completed  two;  one 
for  our  parlour,  and  the  other  for  our  drawingroom,  as  we 
jocosely  named  them;  both  of  which  were  completely  fit 
for  our  reception  by  the  time  the  rains  had  set  in. 

All  we  had  suffered  during  this  season  in  the  preceding 
year  doubled  the  value  of  the  comforts  and  conveniences 
with  which   we  were  now  surrounded.     We  were   never 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  381 

tired  of  admiring  our  warm  and  well-arranged  apartments, 
lighted  with  windows,  and  well  secured  with  doors  from 
wind  and  rain,  and  our  granary  filled  with  more  than  a  suf- 
ficient winter  supply  of  food  for  ourselves  and  for  our  cattle. 
In  the  morning,  our  first  care  was  to  feed  and  give  them 
drink;  and  both  these  were  now  constantly  at  hand,  without 
the  pains  of  fetching  or  preparing:  after  this  we  assembled 
in  the  parlour,  where  prayers  were  read,  and  breakfast 
immediately  served:  we  then  adjourned  to  the  common 
room,  where  all  sorts  of  industry  went  forward,  and  which 
contained  the  spinning-wheel  and  loom  I  had,  though  with 
indifferent  success,  constructed  to  gratify  my  wife.  Here 
all  united  in  the  business  of  producing  different  kinds  of 
substances,  which  she  afterwards  made  into  apparel.  I  had 
also  contrived  to  construct  a  turning  machine,  having  used 
for  the  purpose  one  of  the  small  cannon  wheels,  with  the 
help  of  which  the  boys  and  I  managed  to  produce  some 
neat  utensils  for  general  use.  After  dinner,  our  work  was 
resumed  till  night,  when  we  lighted  candles;  and  as  they 
cost  no  more  than  our  own  trouble  in  collecting  and  man- 
ufacturing the  materials,  we  did  not  refuse  ourselves  the 
pleasure  of  using  many  at  a  time,  to  admire  their  lights 
splendidly  reflected  by  the  crystals  every  where  pendent. 
We  had  formed  a  convenient  portion  of  our  dwelling  into  a 
small  chapel,  in  which  we  left  the  crystals  as  produced  by 
nature;  and  they  exhibited  a  wondrous  assemblage  of  col- 
onnades, porticoes,  altars,  which,  when  the  place  was  lighted 
to  supply  the  want  of  a  window,  presented  a  truly  enchant- 
ing spectacle.  Divine  service  was  performed  in  it  regular- 
ly every  Sunday.  I  had  raised  a  sort  of  pulpit,  from  which 
I  pronounced  such  discourses  as  I  had  framed  for  the  in- 
struction of  my  affectionate  group  of  auditors.     Jack  and 


382  THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.    l 

Francis  had  a  natural  inclination  for  music.  I  did  the  most 
I  could  in  making  a  flageolet  apiece  for  them  of  two  reeds, 
on  which  they  so  frequently  practised  as  to  attain  a  tolera- 
ble proficiency:  they  accompanied  their  mother,  who  had  a 
sweet-toned  voice,  the  volume  of  which  was  doubled  by  the 
echoes  of  the  grottos,  and  they  produced  together  a  very 
pleasing  little  concert. 

Thus,  as  will  be  perceived,  we  had  made  the  first  steps 
towards  a  condition  of  civilisation:  separated  from  society, 
condemned,  perhaps,  to  pass  the  remainder  of  life  in  this 
desert  island,  we  yet  possessed  the  means  of  happiness;  we 
had  abundance  of  all  the  necessaries,  and  many  of  the  com- 
forts, desired  by  human  beings!  We  had  fixed  habits  of  ac- 
tivity and  industry;  we  were  in  ourselves  serene  and  con- 
tented; our  bodily  health  and  strength  increased  from  day 
today;  the  sentiment  of  tender  attachment  was.  perfect  in 
every  heart;  we  every  day  acquired  some  new  and  still 
improving  channel  for  the  exertion  of  our  physical  and 
moral  faculties;  we  every  where  beheld,  and  at  all  times 
acknowledged,  marks  of  the  divine  wisdom  and  goodness; 
our  minds  were  penetrated  with  love,  gratitude,  and  ven- 
eration for  the  Providence  who  had  so  miraculously  rescued 
and  preserved  us,  and  conducted  us  to  the  true  destination  of 
man — that  of  providing  by  his  labour  for  the  wants  of  his 
offspring!  I  trusted  in  the  same  goodness  for  restoring  us 
once  more  to  the  society  of  our  fellow  men,  or  for  bestow- 
ing upon  us  the  means  of  founding  in  this  desert  a  happy 
and  flourishing  colony  of  human  beings,  and  waiting  in  si- 
lence for  the  further  manifestation  of  his  holy  will,  we  pass- 
ed our  days  in  a  course  of  industry,  innocent  pleasures,  and 
reciprocal  affection.     Nearly  two  years  have  elapsed  with- 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  383 

out  our  perceiving  the  smallest  trace  of  civilized  or  savage 
man;  without  the  appearance  of  a  single  vessel  or  canoe 
upon  the  vast  sea  by  which  we  are  surrounded.  Ought  we 
then  to  indulge  a  hope  that  we  shall  once  again  behold  the 
face  of  a  fellow  creature? — We  encourage  serenity  and 
thankfulness  in  each  other,  and  wait  with  resignation  the 
event! 


384  THE    SWISS    FAMILY     ROBINSON. 


POSTSCRIPT  BY  THE  EDITOR. 


I  have  presented  the  public  with  the  part  I  had  in  my 
possession,  of  the  Journal  of  the  Swiss  Pastor,  who,  with  his 
family,  was  shipwrecked  on  a  desert  island.  It  cannot  es- 
cape observation,  that  it  exhibits  a  lively  picture  of  the 
happiness  which  does  not  fail  to  result  from  the  practice  of 
moral  virtues.  Thus,  in  a  situation  that  seemed  calculated 
to  produce  despair,  we  see  piety,  affection,  industry,  and  a 
generous  concern  for  fellow  sufferings,  forming  the  basis  of 
an  unexpected  state  of  serenity  and  happiness.  We  also 
see  the  advantage  of  including  in  the  education  of  boys 
such  a  knowledge  of  the  natural  productions  of  the  earth, 
of  the  various  combinations  by  which  they  may  be  rendered 
serviceable,  and  of  the  use  of  tools  of  every  kind,  as  may 
qualify  them  to  assist  others,  or  preserve  themselves,  under 
every  possible  occurrence  of  adversity  or  danger.  It  now 
remains  for  me  to  inform  the  reader  by  what  means  the 
Journal  of  the  Swiss  Pastor  came  into  my  possession. 

Three  or  four  years  subsequent  to  the  occurrence  of  the 
shipwreck  of  the  pastor  and  his  family,  an  English  transport 
was  driven  by  a  tempest  upon  the  same  shore.  The  name 
of  the  vessel  was  The  .Adventurer,  Captain  Johnson:  it  was 
on  a  voyage  from  New    Zealand  to   the  eastern  coast  of 


THE    SWISS     FAMILY    ROBINSON.  385 

North  America,  by  Otaheite,  in  the  South  Seas,  to  fetch  a 
cargo  of  skins  and  furs  for  China,  and  to  proceed  from  Can- 
ton  to  England.  A  violent  tempest,  of  several  days'  dura- 
tion, drove  it  from  its  track.  The  vessel  continued  to  beat 
about  in  unknown  seas,  and  was  now  so  injured  by  the 
weather,  that  the  best  hope  of  the  captain  and  his  company 
was  to  get  into  some  port  where  they  might  refit.  They 
discovered  a  coast  with  some  high  lands,  and  as  the  wind 
had  somewhat  abated,  they  made  with  all  speed  for  the 
shore.  When  within  a  short  distance,  they  cast  their  an- 
chor, and  put  out  a  boat  containing  some  of  the  officers,  to 
examine  the  coast,  and  find  a  place  for  landing.  They  row- 
ed backward  and  forward  for  some  time  without  success: 
at  length  they  turned  a  promontory,  and  perceived  a  bay 
whose  calm  waters  seemed  to  invite  their  approach.  This 
was  the  Safely  Bay  of  the  wrecked  islanders:  the  boat  put 
on  shore,  and  the  officers  with  astonishment  beheld  the 
traces  of  the  abode  of  man.  A  handsome,  well-conditioned 
pinnace  and  a  small  boat  were  there  at  anchor:  near  the 
strand,  under  a  rock,  was  a  tent,  and  further  on,  in  the 
rock,  a  house-door  and  windows  announced  European  com- 
forts and  workmanship.  The  officers  advanced  towards  the 
spot,  and  were  met  half-way  by  a  man  of  middle  age,  dress- 
ed like  a  European,  and  armed  with  a  gun.  The  stranger 
accosted  them  with  friendly  tones  and  gestures;  he  spoke 
first  German,  and  then  some  words  in  English.  Lieutenant 
Bell,  one  of  the  English  officers,  who  spoke  the  German 
language,  answered.  A  mutual  confidence  immediately 
ensued.  We  need  not  add,  that  the  stranger  was  the  Fam- 
ily Robinson,  whose  wife  and  children  happened  at  the  mo- 
ment to  be  at  Falcon's  Stream.  He  had  discovered  the 
English  ship  in  the   morning  with  his  glass;  and,  unwilling 


THE    SWISS    FAMILY    ROBINSON.  387 

to  alarm  his  family,  he  had  come,  perceiving  she  bore  that 
way,  alone  to  the  coast. 

After  an  interchange  of  cordial  feelings,  and  a  hospitable 
reception  of  the  officers  at  the  dwelling,  the  Swiss  Pastor 
put  his  Journal  into  the  hands  of  Lieutenant  Bell,  to  be  con- 
veyed to  Captain  Johnson,  that  he  also  might  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  story  of  the  solitary  islanders.  At  the 
end  of  an  hour's  conversation,  the  newly-found  friends 
separated,  in  the  pleasing  expectation  of  meeting  again  on 
the  following  day. — But  Heaven  had  otherwise  ordained. 

During  the  night  the  tempest  revived  with  new  terrors. 
The  Adventurer  could  not  be  held  at  anchor,  but  was  oblig- 
ed to  steer  for  safety  to  the  bosom  of  the  ocean.  As  there 
was  no  favourable  change  of  weather  for  several  days,  the 
vessel  was  driven  so  far  from  the  coast  of  Safety  Bay,  as  to 
leave  no  possibility  of  returning,  and  Captain  Johnson  was 
compelled  to  renounce  the  gratification  of  seeing  this  ex- 
traordinary family,  or  of  proposing  to  convey  them  all  to 
Europe. 

Captain  Johnson  brought  the  Journal  of  the  Swiss  Pastor 
to  England,  from  whence  it  was  transmitted  to  a  friend  in 
Switzerland,  who  has  deemed  its  contents  an  instructive  les- 
son to  the  world.  There  was  found  attached  to  the  Journal 
a  rough  sketch  of  the  features  of  the  island,  which  Lieuten- 
ant Bell  thinks  the  Swiss  Pastor  informed  him  was  execu+ed 
by  his  son  Fritz. — The  Editor  subjoins  it,  supposing  it  will 
be  considered  an  object  worthy  of  the  interest  of  his  young 
readers. 


NOTES. 


Penguin  (pages  73,  222) ;  a  bird  of  the  goose  kind,  found  near  the 
Straits  of  Magellan.  It  is  about  the  size  of  the  Indian  cock;  the  feath- 
ers on  the  back  are  black,  and  on  the  belly  white.  It  has  a  large  neck, 
circled  round  with  a  white  collar.  Properly  speaking,  it  has  no  wings, 
but  two  pinions  hang  like  two  little  arms  from  its  sides,  having  no  feath- 
ers beyond  the  joint.  These  pinions  serve  the  purpose  of  fins,  in  ena- 
bling the  penguin  to  swim  with  ease,  but  it  cannot  fly.  The  tail  is 
short;  the  feet  black;  the  beak  narrow,  and  rather  larger  than  that  of 
the  raven.  The  bird  carries  its  head  erect  in  walking,  and  the  pinions 
fall  at  its  side  ;  so  that  when  many  of  them  are  seen  in  a  line  along  the 
shore,  where  they  are  accustomed  to  assemble  in  large  numbers,  they 
may  from  a  distance  be  mistaken  for  little  men.  Their  flesh  is  well- 
tasted,  but  their  skin  is  so  tough,  that,  but  for  the  extreme  stupidity  of 
their  nature,  it  would  be  difficult  to  destroy  them. — Valmont  de  Bro- 
ntare. 

Flamingo  (p.  145).  This  bird  takes  its  name  from  the  singular  colour 
of  its  plumage,  being  of  a  bright  flamecoloured  red.  It  is  to  be  found 
both  in  the  old  and  the  new  continent.  It  is  a  gregarious  animal,  fre- 
quenting the  seashore  and  the  marshes  occasionally  covered  by  the  sea. 
When  the  flamingo  sets  out  upon  a  fishing  expedition,  the  birds  range 
themselves  in  file,  so  as,  at  a  distance,  to  produce  the  appearance  of 
an  extended  line  of  soldiers.  When  drawn  up  in  their  military  array, 
there  are  always  sentinels  fixed,  who,  in  case  of  alarm,  utter  a  loud  cry, 
capable  of  being  heard  at  a  great  distance,  and  considerably  resembling 
the  sound  of  a  trumpet :  the  sentinel  then  takes  wing,  and  all  the  others 
follow.  They  avoid  all  inhabited  places,  and  live  on  the  small  fry  of 
fish,  or  shellfish,  and  on  insects  that  they  find  in  the  mud,  into  which 
they  plunge  their  long  and  singular  beak.  The  flamingo  builds  its  nest 
on  the  ground,  and  generally  in  marshes ;  they  scrape  the  mud  into  a 
heap  with  their  feet,  so  as  to  make  little  hillocks  of  a  conical  figure,  and 
a  foot  and  a  half  in  height^;  the  hillock  is  a  little  hollowed  at  the  top ;  and 
in  this  hollow  the  female  lays  two  or  three  eggs  at  most,  upon  which  she 
Bits :  her  legs,  which  are  very  long,  resting  upon  the  level  ground,  or 


390  NOTES. 

plunged  into  the  water,  while,  with  the  back  part  of  her, body,  she  keeps 
the  eggs  in  a  proper  state  of  warmth.  The  young  ones  run  with  inex- 
pressible quickness  in  a  few  days  after  their  birth,  but  do  not  begin  to 
fly  till  they  have  acquired  their  fall  size.  Their  plumage  is  at  first  of  a 
pale  gray  approaching  to  white;  it  grows  redder  as  the  young  flamingo 
increases  in  age  ;  but  nearly  a  year  elapses  before  this  bird  reaches  its  full 
stature ;  at  which  time  it  first  shows  its  robe  of  a  brilliant  flamecolour. 
The  flamingo  is  considered  as  a  delicate  morsel  for  the  table,  having 
some  resemblance  to  the  partridge  in  flavour.  When  in  full  growth,  it  is 
more  than  four  feet  long  from  the  beak  to  the  tail,  and  nearly  six  feet 
high  to  the  extremity  of  the  talons.  The  neck  and  legs  are  ex- 
tremely long ;  the  plumage  varies  in  colour  on  the  different  parts  of  the 
body,  from  a  bright  vermilion  to  a  beautiful  rose  colour,  and  the  legs  and 
feet  are  of  the  same  tint.  There  are,  however,  a  few  black  feathers  in 
each  wing ;  the  beak  in  some  is  red,  and  in  others  yellow ;  but  the  ex- 
tremity in  all  is  black. — See  Nouveau  Dictionnaire  d'  Histoire  Naturelle. 

Great  Bustard  (p.  246)  ;  of  the  gallinaceous  order.  This  is  the  largest 
bird  of  European  climates ;  the  male  being  four  feet  in  length  from  the 
beak  to  the  tail,  seven  in  breadth  with  the  wings  extended,  and  weighing 
about  thirty-five  pounds.  The  females  are  commonly  a  third  less  in 
every  respect.  Though  the  wings  of  the  bustard  are  small  in  propor- 
tion to  the  body,  yet  the  bird  can  raise  and  sustain  itself  in  the  air,  but 
cannot  proceed  out  of  a  straight  direction.  It  loves  open  spacious  plains 
and  avoids  the  water.  The  bustard  is  timid,  and  difficult  to  approach ; 
it  however  defends  itself  furiously  when  attempted  to  be  caught,  by  beat- 
ing the  enemy  with  its  legs.  If  taken  when  young,  it  is  easily  tamed, 
and  brought  to  feed  with  other  poultry.  The  most  common  colour  of 
this  bird  is  black,  slightly  tinged  with  red  on  the  back,  and  the  under 
parts  white,  mixed  with  fawn  colour;  a  down  of  bright  pink  appears  at 
the  roots  of  the  feathers.  There  are  many  kinds  of  this  animal,  both  in- 
digenous and  exotic  :  the  African ;  the  tufted ;  the  blue  ;  the  white  bus- 
tard, &c. — JYeio  Dictionary  of  Natural  History. 

Yguana  (p.  252) ;  a  reptile  of  the  family  of  lizards;  it  is  found  in  South 
America  and  its  islands.  The  animal  is  from  four  to  six  feet  in  length, 
of  which  the  tail  makes  at  least  half.  The  head  is  small,  flattened  at  the 
sides,  covered  with  scales,  and  provided  with  large  jaws  and  sharp-point- 
ed teeth.  A  protuberance  like  a  wen  appears  in  the  front  of  the  neck. 
The  body  is  every  where  clothed  with  hard  scales.  The  colour  of  this 
creature  is  variable ;  its  common  hue  is  green  tinged  with  yellow ;  some- 
times k  exhibits  gray  or  blue  tints,  and  at  others  a  mixture  of  all  these. 


NOTES.  391 

\ 
colours  together,  like  the  chameleon,  which  the  yguana  greatly  resem- 
bles.—The  whole  family  are  found  to  love  music  passionately;  a  sure 
means  of  attracting  them  is  by  musical  sounds  or  whistling  ;  in  this  man- 
ner the  yguana  is  subdued. — When  the  musician  is  sufficiently  near,  he 
plunges  the  end  of  a  switch  into  the  nostril  of  the  animal,  who  dies  in- 
stantly without  pain. — Dictionary  of  Natural  History. 

Canadian  Heath- Cock  (p.  558).  This  bird  is  found  also  in  Maryland 
Pennsylvania,  and  adjacent  parts.  Its  modes  of  life  are  similar  to  the 
heath-cock  of  Europe,  and  is  called  by  some  authors  simply  the  crested 
heath-cock.  The  head  and  neck  are  of  a  deep  glossy  black,  which  in  all 
other  parts  is  tinctured  with  green.  The  bill  is  covered  with  a  yellow 
skin,  except  at  the  extremity,  where  it  is  bare  and  black ;  the  eyes  are  also 
encircled  with  a  skin  of  the  same  colour.  On  the  top  of  its  head  there  is  a 
crest  formed  of  several  handsome  feathers  two  inches  and  a  half  in  length. 
The  feathers  on  the  neck,  which  are  also  of  a  beautiful  fibre  form,  fall 
gracefully  down ;  but  when  the  creature  is  agitated,  they,  as  well  as  those 
on  the  head,  become  erect.  When  he  wishes  to  call  his  females  round 
him,  the  feathers  assume  this  state ;  he  trains  his  wings  on  the  ground, 
and  spreads  his  tail  into  the  form  of  a  wheel,  and  in  the  velocity  of  his 
motions  makes  a  singular  kind  of  noise  like  distant  thunder  or  a  muffled 
drum. — New  Dictionary  of  Natural  History. 

Myriai  cerifera,  or  Wax-tree(p.  260) ;  it  grows  in  Louisiana,  and  a  small- 
er kind  in  Carolina.  It  is  a  pretty  aquatic  shrub,  and  bears  whitish-col- 
oured flowers,  the  fruit  of  which  hangs  in  small  clusters.  It  is  about  the 
height  of  a  very  small  cherry-tree,  and  in  the  form  and  smell  of  the 
leaves  resembles  the  myrtle.  The  berries  are  of  a  gray  colour,  and  con- 
tain kernels  which  are  covered  with  a  kind  of  wax,  of  which  the  natives 
make  good  candles.  Naturalists  are  of  opinion  that  it  might  be  easily 
made  to  flourish  in"  other  climates. — See  Valnwnt  de  Bromare,  and  Dic- 
tionary of  Natural  History. 

Tuiete  (p.  262).  This  is  the  smallest  kind  of  Brazilian  parrot.  There 
is  an  infinite  variety  in  their  plumage. 

Ants  (p.  263).  Among  other  authors,  see  M.  Huber  of  Geneva :  he  has 
published  a  volume  of  his  observations  upon  ants,  no  less  agreeable  than 
instructive  in  the  perusal. — See  also  History  of  the  Insects  of  America,  by 
Mademoiselle  Merian. 

Caoutchouc  (p.  265) ;  the  tree  which  furnishes  elastic  gum;  it  is  called 
by  the  natives  of  Brazil,  where  it  is  produced,  Hhevi. 

Buffalo  (p.  285) ;  a  ruminating  quadruped  of  the  ox  species,  which  it 
nearly  resembles  in  form  and  stature  ;  the  head  is  larger,  the  snout  long- 


392  NOTES. 

er,  and  its  horns,  which  almost  touch  at  the  root,  spread  to  a  distance  of 
five  feet  at  their  extremities ;  its  ears  are  also  larger  and  pointed.  The 
whole  form  of  the  buffalo,  and  no  less  its  motions,  announce  amaz- 
ing vigour  and  strength;  but  the  enormous  size  of  the  head,  the  singular 
curvatures  of  its  long  horns,  under  which  appears  a  large  tuft  of  bristly 
hair  of  a  yellowish  white  colour,  give  a  terrific  ferocity  and  wildness  to 
its  physiognomy.  The  animal  inhabits  hot  countries.  It  is  used  in  Italy 
as  a  domestic  beast  for  tillage  and  drawing.  The  method  adopted  for 
taming  the  buffalo  is  by  fixing  a  ring  in  the  nostril  when  about  three 
years  old.  The  operator  contrives  to  entangle  the  legs  with  a  string,  and 
the  animal  falls  to  the  ground ;  several  men  fall  upon  it  and  confine 
the  legs,  while  others  make  the  wound  and  pass  the  ring ;  it  is  then 
left :  it  runs  furiously  from  place  to  place,  and  endeavours  to  get  rid  of 
the  ring;  in  a  short  time  it  begins  to  be  accustomed  to  its  fate,  and  by 
degrees  to  learn  obedience.  A  cord  is  fastened  to  the  ring  to  lead  the 
buffalo  ;  if  it  resists,  it  suffers  pain  ;  it  therefore  prefers  to  yield,  and  thus 
is  brought  to  follow  a  conductor  willingly.  After  a  certain  time,  the  ring 
falls  oil";  but  the  creature  has,  ere  this,  become  attached,  and  will  follow  its 
master.  Nothing  is  more  common  than  to  see  a  buffalo  return  from  a 
distance  of  forty  miles  to  seek  him.  Their  young  keepers  give  them  a 
name,  which  they  never  fail  to  answer  to;  and,  on  hearing  it  pronounced, 
they  stop  short  in  the  midst  of  a  company  of  their  species.  Troops  of 
buffaloes  are  found  together  in  the  plains  of  America  and  Asia  that  are 
washed  by  rivers  :  they  do  not  attack  men  unless  provoked ;  but  the  report 
of  a  gun  renders  them  furious,  and  extremely  dangerous :  they  run 
straight  to  the  enemy,  throw  him  down  with  their  horns,  and  do  not 
desist  till  he  is  crushed  to  death  in  the  struggle.  A  red  colour  irritates 
them,  and  they  are  hunted  with  infinite  care  and  precaution. — Dic- 
tionary of  Natural  History. 

Prickly  palm,  or  Adam's  needle  (p.  291). — The  leaves  of  this  tree  are 
sometimes  ten  feet  in  length  ;  they  are  winged  in  form,  and  the  petals 
are  furnished  with  long  sharp  thorns,  which  stay  on  the  trunk  even  when 
the  leaves  are  decayed,  and  form,  from  their  numbers  and  strength,  a 
Bure  defence  against  being  approached.  The  fruit  of  this  tree  is  larger 
than  a  pigeon's  egg,  of  an  oblong  shape,  of  a  yellow  colour,  and  like 
velvet  to  the  touch. 

Malabar,  or  Indian  Eagle  (p.  292,)  is  small ;  not  above  the  size  of  a  large 
pigeon ;  but  in  the  smallness  of  its  volume,  elegance  of  symmetry  and 
beauty  of  plumage  are  united  ;  the  animation  of  its  eyes,  its  lively  move- 
ments, the  boldness  of  its  look  and  attitudes,  give  to  its  whole  physiog- 


NOTES.  393 

Homy  the  appearance  of  pride  and  courage.  The  Malayese  have  made  it 
one  of  their  idols,  and  offer  it  a  kind  of  worship.  A  tuft  of  large  feathers, 
of  a  dazzling  white,  the  lower  part  of  which  is  of  a  deep  shining  black, 
covers  the  head,  the  neck,  and  all  the  breast  of  this  handsome  bird;  the 
rest  of  the  plumage  is  of  a  very  bright  chestnut-colour,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  tip  of  the  six  first  feathers  of  each  wing,  which  is  black.  The 
beak  is  ash-coloured,  and  of  a  yellowish  green  at  the  point;  its  mem- 
brane is  blue,  feet  yellow,  talons  black.  This  species  is  found  in  Malabar, 
Visapour,  the  Mogul  Empire,  &c.  In  voracity  it  does  not  fall  short  of 
any  other. — Dictionary  of  Natural  History. 

Sago-palmist  (p.  294).  Of  all  the  palm-trees  which  are  natives  of  Asia, 
the  sago-palmist  is  one  of  the  most  useful  and  interesting:  a  liquor  runs 
from  incisions  made  in  its  trunk,  which  readily  ferments,  and  is  both 
salutary  and  agreeable  for  drinking.  The  marrow,  or  pith  of  the  tree, 
after  undergoing  a  slight  preparation,  is  the  substance  known  bjr  the 
name  of  sago  in  Europe,  and  so  eminently  useful  in  the  list  of  nutritious 
food  for  the  sick.  The  trunk  and  large  leaves  of  the  palmist-sago  are  a 
powerful  resource  in  the  construction  of  buildings ;  the  first  furnishes 
planks  for  the  carpenter,  and  the  second  a  covering  for  the  roof.  From 
the  last  are  also  made  cord,  matting,  and  other  articles  of  domestic  use. 

P.  303.  M.  Huber  Lullin,  of  Geneva,  has  published  an  excellent  trea- 
tise on  the  economy  of  bees ;  he  has  given  the  most  singular  and  best- 
attested  circumstances  of  the  queen  bee ;  but  what  more  astonishes  is, 
that  he,  who  has  thrown  such  lights  on  this  attractive  object  of  natural 
history,  is  blind. 

Onagra,  (Eigitai,  and  Koulan  (p.  316) ;  apparently  different  names  for 
the  same  animal,  varying  according  to  the  countries  where  it  is  found, 
and  authors  who  have  spoken  of  it.  In  shape  and  structure  it  holds  the 
midway  betwixt  the  horse  and  ass ;  its  head  is  strong,  and  erect  in  the 
state  of  rest;  it  proudly  snuffs  the  air  in  its  course,  which  is  more  fleet 
than  the  swiftest  horse.  Its  neck  finely  turned,  chest  full  and  open,  back 
long,  spine  concave  and  rough,  haunches  taper,  hoofs  like  the  ass,  mane 
short  and  thick,  the  jaw  containing  thirty-four  teeth,  tail  two  feet  long, 
and  exactly  like  a  cow's,  shoulders  narrow  and  bare  of  flesh  :  it  has  great 
suppleness  in  all  its  members  and  motions.  The  hair  is  mostly  of  a  yel- 
lowish brown ;  a  reddish  yellow  covers  the  fore-part  of  the  head,  and 
between  the  legs  ;  the  mane  and  tail  are  black.  Along  the  back  is  a  dark- 
brown  stripe,  that  grows  broader  from  the  loins  upwards,  and  becomes 
narrower  towards  the  tail.  In  winter  its  hair  is  long,  curling,  waving; 
in  summer  short  and  glossy.     These  animals  stray  in  numbers  over  the 


394  NOTES. 

vast  deserts  and  open  plains  abounding  with  saline  herbage :  they  never 
approach  the  woods  or  mountains.  They  have  the  senses  of  hearing 
and  smelling  in  perfection.  Their  neighing,  somewhat  peculiar,  is  much 
louder  than  that  of  the  horse.  They  are  timid  and  wild,  and  their  chief 
defence  is  in  their  speed ;  yet  they  are  of  a  peaceful,  social  nature.  They 
commonly  troop  together  from  twenty  to  thirty,  sometimes  a  hundred : 
each  troop  has  its  leader,  that  watches  over  its  safety,  conducts  it,  and 
gives  the  signal  of  flight  when  danger  is  near.  The  token  of  alarm  is 
bounding  thrice  round  the  object  of  their  fear.  If  their  leader  is  killed, 
(and  he  frequently  is,  by  approaching  closer  to  the  hunters  than  the 
rest,)  the  troop  disperses,  and  it  is  easy  to  kill  and  take  them.  The  Mon- 
gou  Tartars  highly  prize  the  flesh,  which  they  find  delicious ;  but  the 
osigitai  has  not  yet  been  tamed,  even  when  taken  young.  Could  it  be 
domesticated,  it  would  doubtless  be  a  prime  beast  for  the  saddle,  but  it  is 
of  an  untamable  disposition ;  when  the  utmost  attempts  have  been  made 
to  subdue  them,  they  have  died  in  breaking  rather  than  submit  to  the 
restraint. 

Phormion,  or  Flax-plant  (p.  326) ; — a  plant  of  New  Zealand  made 
known  by  Cook.  The  inhabitants  of  that  island  get  from  its  leaves  a 
very  strong  flax,  with  which  they  make  stuffs,  nets,  ropes,  &c.  They 
are  two  or  three  feet  long,  two  inches  broad,  shaped  like  a  sword.  Steep- 
ed in  water,  they  produce  fibres  longer  and  stronger  than  those  of  flax, 
and  which  are  equal  in  fineness.  The  climate  where  this  useful  plant 
is  found,  inclines  one  to  think  it  might  be  cultivated  with  success  in 
Europe,  and  turned  to  considerable  account.  When  these  leaves  aie 
opened  upon  the  plant,  an  inodorous  gum  issues  from  them,  which  is 
transparent,  of  a  straw  colour,  and  in  every  respect  similar  to  gum  arabic. 
Sal  gem  (p.  347)  ;  a  name  given  to  a  kind  of  salt,  harder  than  common 
salt,  and  which  sometimes  has  the  transparency  and  colour  of  precious 
stones.  It  is  found  invariably  in  the  same  soil  as  gypsum,  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  which  constant  observation  has  proved  it  to  be  never  want- 
ing :  and  even  the  strata  of  salt  and  gypsum  frequently  alternate.  The 
sal-gem  forms  itself  sometimes  into  large  undivided  beds,  sometimes  it 
runs  in  large  detached  cubes,  behind  beds  of  clay  and  rock.  The  mines 
(I  may  say  the  quarries)  of  sal-gem  are  found  at  every  height,  and  now 
and  then  on  a  level  with  the  plains.  In  all  parts  of  the  known  world, 
no  production  of  nature  is  more  abundant  than  salt.  Most  of  the  sal- 
gem  mines  in  Spain  and  England  are  of  several  hundred  feet  extent. 
The  town  of  Cardona  in  Spain,  is  situated  at  the  foot  of  a  rock  of  solid 
salt,  rising  almost  perpendicular  to  the  height  of  four  or  five  hundred 


NOTES.  395 

feet,  without  interstice,  fissure,  or  separate  layer.  This  immense  mass 
of  salt  is  about  a  league  in  circuit ;  its  depth,  and  consequently  the  bed  on 
which  it  rests,  is  unknown.  From  top  to  bottom  the  salt  is  of  the  purest 
white,  or  of  a  light  transparent  blue.  This  prodigious  mountain  of  salt, 
quite  free  from  gypsum,  and  other  extraneous  matter,  is  the  only  one  of 
the  kind  in  Europe.  In  the  county  of  Chester,  in  England,  near  the 
Irish  sea,  is  a  very  extensive  mine  of  sal-gem  behind  a  ledge  of  rock ; 
and  after  having  worked  through  twenty-five  feet  of  salt,  in  several 
places  of  a  fine  deep  red,  from  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  of  rock  again  ap- 
peared, and  salt  under  that:  a  fact  which  destroys  the  hypothesis  of  sal- 
gem  being  produced  from  saline  lakes  dried  up. — Dictionary  of  Natural 
History. 

Gypsum  (p.  347). — A  mineral  substance  composed  of  chalk  and  sul- 
phureous acid:  in  strictness,  it  may  be  considered  as  a  neutral  salt; 
but  being  soluble  only  in  a  sniall  degree,  and  having  the  external  char- 
acter of  stone,  mineralogists  class  it  as  a  stony  substance. 

Black  Swan  (p.  374)  ; — discovered  by  M.  de  la  Biilardiere  on  a  lake  of 
New  Zealand. 

Beast  with  a  Bill  (p.  375). — This  singular  creature  was,  like  the  last, 
discovered  in  a  lake  of  New  Zealand.     Blumenbach's  Natural  History. 

Arcadia  (p.  377), — according  to  the  poets,  was  the  most  beautiful  and 
the  happiest  of  all  countries. 


MUNROE  &  FRANCIS, 

No.  128,  WASHINGTON    STREET,   BOSTON, 

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MUNROE   &  FRANCIS 

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PETER  PARLEY'S 

BOOK  OF  BIBLE  STORIES, 

FOB 

CHILDREN  AND  YOUTH. 


In  this  little  volume  I  propose  to  tell  you  some  of  the  stories  which 
are  found  in  the  Bible.  This  book  consists  of  two  parts, — the  Old 
Testament,  and  the  New  Testament. 

The  Old  Testament  tells  us  how  God  made  this  great  round  world 
upon  which  we  live,  with  its  mountains,  valleys,  rivers,  lakes  and  seas. 
It  tells  us  how  He  covered  the  land  with  trees  and  plants,  and  ftmr- 
footed  beasts  ;  how  He  filled  the  air  with  birds  and  insects,  and  the 
waters  with  fishes  of  a  thousand  forms. 

It  tells  us  how  He  created  mankind,  and  how  they  disobeyed  Him — 
how  they  multiplied  and  built  great  cities,  and  how,  at  length,  the 
whole  world  was  swept  by  a  terrible  flood  of  waters.  It  tells  us  the 
long  and  interesting  history  of  the  Jews,  who  inhabited  a  country  now 
called  Palestine,  which  lies  more  than  four  thousand  miles  from  us  in 
a  south-easterly  direction. 

It  gives  us  an  account  of  Moses,  Joshua,  Daniel,  David,  Solomon, 
and  many  other  interesting  characters.  It  reveals  to  us,  in  short,  the 
wonderful  story  of  the  first  ages  of  the  world  ;  the  great  events  which 
happened — how  men  lived,  thought  and  acted  ;  and  how  God,  in  that 
remote  period,  dealt  with  mankind. 

The  New  Testament  gives  an  account  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  must  be 
regarded  as  the  most  extraordinary  personage  that  ever  appeared  on 
this  earth.  His  story  is  at  once  the  most  wonderful,  and  the  most 
affecting  that  has  ever  been  written.  He  appeared  among  the  Jews 
about  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  for  the  purpose  of  restoring  that 
knowledge  which  mankind  had  nearly  lost. 

You  will  therefore  perceive  that  the  Bible,  consisting  of  the  Old  and 
New  Testament,  is  a  very  interesting  book,  and  full  of  the  most  im- 


portant  truths.  In  the  following  pages  you  will  find  some  of  the  most 
remarkable  stories  which  it  contains  ;  but  in  after-days,  when  you  get 
older,  I  beg  you  to  make  the  Bible  your  constant  companion,  and  look 
upon  it  as  a  good  and  wise  friend,  that,  if  listened  to,  will  guide  you 
to  happiness  here,  and  bliss  hereafter.  PETER  PARLEY. 


RHYMES  FOR  THE   NURSERY. 


MUNROE   &  FRANCIS 
Have  prepared  and  printed  in  one  little  volume  all  the 

RHYMES    FOR    THE    NURSERY, 

contained  in  the  famous  books,  called  "  The  Daisy,"  "  The 
Rosebud,"  "  The  Pink,"  "  The  Lily,"  "  Poetry  Without 
Fiction,"  &c.  &c. — with  pictures  on  almost  every 
page,  to  serve  as  a  constant  source  of  amuse- 
ment and  instruction  to  children,  either 
by  themselves  or  in  the  arms  of  the  Nurse. 

This,  with  the  famous 
MELODIES  OF  MOTHER  GOOSE, 
will  constitute  almost  all  the  literature  necessary  for  the  Nur- 
sery ;   and  will  amply  reward  the  purchaser.     All  tastes 

will  be  suited,  the  serious  and  comic,  the  sedate  and 
the  fanciful.     Those  who  esteem  the  Melodies  too  imag- 
inative for  two-year-olds,  can  take  the  Rhymes  ; 
and  those  who  think  the  Rhymes  too  heavy,  can  hold  to  the 
Melodies :  We  recommend  both. 


Washington-street,   Boston,   have  just  published    a  new  and  neat  edition 

05- 

ORIGINAL  POEMS  FOR  INFANT  MINDS. 

BT    JANE    TAYLOR    AND    HE'S    SISTERS. 

'   In  one  volume,  square  16mo.  w-ith  numerous  engravings. 


A  new  and  handsome  square  lGmo  edition  of 

BY    MBS.    TRIMMER, 

With  many  copperplate  and  other  engravings. 


iM^mi^  ®mw&ms>3  m®®%L% 

OR, 

SPELLING  AND  HEADING  ILLUSTRATED  BY  EMBLEMATIC  FIGURES. 
*1  netc  and  improved  Edition. 

With  more  than  -500  engravings.  The  design  of  the  Little  Child's  Book  (ap- 
proved by  the  sale  of  several  large  editions)  is  to  give  young  children  a  series 
of  pictures  with  short  definitions,  for  their  amusement  and  instruction  until  they 
are  capable  of  more  extensive  reading.     In  square  I6mo. 

The  same  work  is  likewise  published  in  4  separate  books,  with  appropriate 
titles,  &c.  to  each. 

THE    BOIT5®    STORY    BOOK. 

O-R, 

EDWARD  AND  HIS  LITTLE  FRIENDS. 

A  book  for  the  Holidays. 

In  one  vol.  square  16mo,  with    ten  engravings  by    Anderson. 


A  new  and  handsome  square  Ifime  edition  of 

&&&&&&  &®m  ebbs  spwskssmi^B 

Wrth  numerous  elegant  engravings. 


MUNROE  &  FKANCISr 

128  Washington-street,  Boston,  have  recently  published  the  Boy's  Editiow 

of 

In  one  vol.  square  l6mor 

Being  the  whole  complete  edition,,  as  written  by  the  author.    With  16  new- 
Designs  on  wood,  by  Anderson.    The  best  and  cheapest  edition- ever  publishedl 


The  popular  workr 

SA1VDFORD    AND   MERTOIV. 

In  one  volume,  square  16mo. 


THE 


©A8KITT  ®F 


THE  GIFT  OF  AN  UNCLE  AND  AUNT. 

Illustrated  by  fine  wood  Engravings  by  Anderson, 

This  handsome  volume  consists  of  the  popular  and  valuable  Letters  of  Uncle  am? 
Aunt  Newbury  on  important  subjects  for  the  young,  published  in  au  elegant  16mo  square- 
volume  of  nearly  300  pages. 

THE 

^■*     VMM  ^19V#  ^tmm  WV     *9*m         &^  t«M   *i>»     •  »    m  v^     W'*    VtffVV  m      WIN' 

BT    MARIA    EDGEWORTH, 

In  one  vol.  square  16mo,  with  35  engravings  by  Anderson. 


A  new  and  handsome  edition  of 

Square  16mo. 
An  interesting  and  popular  new  work,  with  30  engravings  in  Hartwell's  best  style. 


OCCUPATION  FOR  PLAY  HOURS. 


MUNROE  &  FRANCIS, 

lave  published  ^n  entire  original  Book  for  Girls,  embellished  with  handsonta 
pictures,  designed  by  the  audior,  and  engraved  by  Anderson,  entitled, 

CHE  AMERICAN   GIRL'S  BOOK, 


OCCUPATION  FOR  PLAY  HOURS. 


BY  MISS  LESLIE, 

Author  af  The  Mirror,  Young  Americans,  &©. 


In  books,  or  work,  or  healthful  play 
Ma.j  my  first  years  b#  pas*«d. — Watts. 


This  work  is  a  fine  collection  of  Sports  and  Pastimes  fb? 
the  play  hours  of  girls,  illustrated  with  dialogue,  and  of  course 
very  easy  to  comprehend  ;  containing  also  rules  for  making 
amusing  and  useful  work,  such  as  Pincushions,.  Needlebooks, 
Reticules,  Lamp  Stands,  Dolls,  &e.  &c.  With  a  great  variety  of 
Riddles,  Conundrums,  Enigmas^  Charades,  and  Rebuses,  mostly 
new.  The  working  part  illustrated  by  nearly  fifty  cuts.  This 
book  contains — 


PART  I. 

SPORTS  AND  PASTIMES. 

Lady  Queen  Anne. 

Robin's  Alive. 

The  Bookbinder. 

How  many  miles  to  Babylon? 

Whoop,  or  hide  and  seek. 

Copenhagen. 

Track  the  Rabbit. 


Puss  in  the  Corner. 
Hot  buttered  Beans. 
Stir  the  Mush. 
Twirl  the  Trencher. 
How  many  Fingers. 
Mr.  Pope  and  his  lady. 
Honey  Pot. 
Bread  and  Cheese. 
Frog  in  the  middle. 
The  Blind  Pointer. 


CONTENTS  OF  THE  CHILD 's  OWN  BOOK, 


Cinderella,  or  the  Glass  Slipper. 

The  Discreet  Princess. 

Diamonds  and  Toads. 

Fatal  and  Fortune. 

Fortunatus. 

Fortunio. 

Fisherman  and  the  Genii. 

Fair  one  with  Golden  Locks. 

Goody  Two  Shoes 

Griselda. 

Graciosa. 

Gulliver's  Travels. 

Hop  o'  my  Thumb. 

History  of  Little  Jack. 

History  of  King  Pippin. 

Jack  the  Giant  Killer. 


Nourjahad. 
Puss  in  Boots. 
Philip  Quart. 
Peronelia. 
Prince  Le  Boo. 
Riquet  with  the  Tuft 
Robin  Hood. 
Robinson  Crusoe. 
Seven  Champions. 
Three  Wishes. 
Tom  Thumb. 
Valentine  and  Orson. 
White  Cat. 

Whitington  and  his  Cat. 
Yellow  Dwarf. 


Akrtriin,  or  Um  Woaderfal  Limp. 


CONTENTS    OF    THE    AMERICAN    GIRI/S    BOOK. 


3 


Sewing  School. 

The  Dutch  Doll. 

The  Christmas  Bag. 

The  King  and  his  Train. 

Hen  and  Chickens. 

Hunt  the  Slipper. 

The  Thimble. 

The  Ten  Fine  Birds. 

Farmers  and  Mechanics. 

Of  what  trade  is  our  Favorite. 

King  aud  Queen. 

She  can  do  little,  who  can't  do  this 

Blindman's  Buff. 

The  Prussian  Exercise. 

The  Bell  of  London. 

Dressing  the  Lady. 

The  Throne  of  Compliments. 

The  Apprentice. 

The  Traveller. 

Chitterbob. 

Magical  Music. 

How  do  you  like  it. 

What  is  my  thought  like. 

The  Elements. 

The  Lawyer. 

The  Secret  Word. 

The  Watch  Word. 

Many  Words  in  one. 

The  Newspaper. 

The  Merchants. 

Tea  Table. 

My  Lady's  Toilet. 

The  Dumb  Orator. 

Consequences. 

I  love  my  love. 

Selling  Pawns  or  Forfeits. 

PLAYS  WITH  TOYS 

The  Graces. 

Battledore  and  Shuttlecock. 

Loto. 


Domino. 

Chequers. 

Fox  and  Geese. 

Morrice. 

Jack  Straws. 

Expedition. 

Recruiting  Officer. 

Tommy  come,  tickle  me. 

Old  Maid  or  Old  Bachelor 

Speculation  or  Matrimony. 

Lend  me  your  Bundle,  neighbor. 


PART  II. 


Enigmas 
Charades. 
Rebuses. 
Conundrums. 


PART  III. 
AMUSING  WORK. 

A  Brick  Pincushion. 
A  Flannel  Pincushion. 
A  Heart  Pincushion. 
A  Pincushion  in  gores. 
A  Corded  Pincushion. 
A  Basket  Pincushion. 
A  Strawberiy. 
A  Bunch  of  Hearts. 
A  Bunch  of  Roots. 
A  Melon-seed  Pincushktt 
A  Star  Pincushion. 
A  Boot  Pincushion. 
A  Swan  Pincushion. 
A  Guitar  Pincushion. 
A  Woman  Pincushion. 


CONTENTS    OF    THE    AMERICAN    GIRl's    BOOK. 


NEEDLE  BOOKS 

A  Bellows  Needle  Book. 

A  Thistle  Needle  Book. 

A  very  convenient  Needle  Book. 

A  Needle  Book  Work  Bag. 

A  Pincushion  Needle  Book. 

A  Three  sided  Needle  Book. 


RETICULES. 

A  Doll  Bag. 

A  Pocket  Reticule. 

A  Three  sided  Reticule. 

A  Plaited  Reticule. 

A  Halbert  Shaped  Reticule. 

A  Circular  Reticule. 

A  Melon  Reticule. 


A  Pocket  Book  Reticule. 
A  Pointed  Reticule. 
A  Dimity  Reticule. 
A  Braided  Reticule. 


VARIETIES. 

A  Lamp  Stand. 

A  Match  Box. 

A  Riddle  Flower. 

A  Dancing  Doll. 

A  jointed  Linen  Doil. 

A  common  Linen  Doll. 

A  Black  DoH. 

Pen  Wipers,  three  or  four  kinds 

Hexagon  Patch  Work. 

Court  Plaster  Case. 


MUNROE  AND  FRANCIS, 

128,  Washington  Street,  have  just  republished  from  the  London  edition,  in  a 

similar  style, 

THE    CHILD'S    OWN   BOOK, 

ILLUSTRATED  WITH  UPWARDS  OF  TWO  HUNDRED 
ENGRAVINGS. 

This  is  a  volume  of  innocent  and  instructive  amusement  for  young  readers. 
Got  up  under  the  inspection  of  a  Lady  who  would  admit  nothing  in  the  least 
immoral  in  sentiment,  nor  loose  in  expression.  All  the  best  of  those  romantic  tales 
fshich  excited  our  youthful  fancy  are  here  presented  in  an  improved  dress.  The 
pictures  are  in  beautiful  style,  done  in  Anderson's  best  manner,  and  the  names  of 
the  pieces  are  as  follows. 


Aladdin,  or  the  Wonderful  Lamp. 

Ali  Baba,  or  the  Forty  Thieves. 

Beauty  and  the  Beast. 

Blanch  and  Rosalinda. 

Blue  Beard. 

The  Children  in  the  Wood- 


Jack  and  the  Bean  Stalk. 

Invisible  Prince. 

Little  Hunchback. 

Little  Red  Ridinghood. 

La  Perouse. 

Miranda  and  die  Royal  Ram. 


t 


